Eternal Magic
by Terran34
Summary: A teen is suddenly wrenched from his college life and sucked through an Anima to Fiore. A lone man with great power falls into darkness and joins a powerful Dark Guild. How will the two interact with the world of Fairy Tail? Rated M for language.
1. A New World

I did say on my profile that I was going to make this story. Not that anyone ever reads it, since I haven't gotten any pms yet. So since I didn't get any help, I'll just have to start it on my own.

I did some extensive research before starting this. I looked into different martial arts fighting styles for my character, since I plan to do a bit of exposition before actually switching worlds. I'm also reading different Fairy Tail fanfictions in order to discover how different authors write the characters. Fairy Tail is one of my favorite animes of all time, so I'd like to do it justice.

Also, I will be writing this first chapter in 1st person, so I can easily relate the thoughts and history of my character without breaking the flow of the story. I intend to write this like a journal entry, at least for the first person segments. So I will be writing conversationally.

Also, just FYI, but I will not be interfering with any "canon" pairings. For example, I will not be taking Juvia from Gray, or Lisanna from Natsu. Nor will I be making pairings where none exist. I won't just waltz in and somehow win Lucy's heart. Or will I annoy the crap out of Jet and Droy by stealing Levy. I intend to integrate my character into this universe with as little disruption as possible to the canon.

Anyhow I will be doing this with no plot in mind. It will be arc based, so that I have the potential to keep it going forever. That said, I would appreciate any arc or job ideas, just in case I run out of ideas myself, though I doubt that will happen for a while. I already have three arcs already planned.

As for where this starts, I'm just going to say that it is before the Tenroujima arc, but after the Edolas Arc. Trust me, that really was a hard decision to make, since I personally love the Edolas arc, but I want to be at that point when every character is in the guild and developed. Since I love Gajeel and want him to be a part of the story too.

Anyhow, let's get things started, shall we? Time to introduce my new characters.

* * *

The only thing I could see were the twin hazel pools of liquid light staring into me, almost as if they could see into my soul. I didn't look away even for a second. I refused to show her any sign of fear.

Her lips curved into a confident smile, which I attempted to return, but with much less success. It infuriated me that she could stand there so calmly, without so much as a drop of sweat showing on her face.

"Oh? Don't tell me you're out of breath already," she taunts me, her eyes shining with mirth. I don't reply. The only thing I can think about right now is the pounding of adrenaline through my body. I can feel myself tense with every slight motion she made, not knowing when to expect a sneak attack.

"It's all right to be scared," she cooed, that smirk on her face never wavering. Her uppity attitude angers me, and that cocky expression she was wearing only made me want to forcefully wipe it from her face.

"Screw you…you're tougher than you look," I can't help but admit. My right fist rises into a vertical position, my knuckles facing the sky. My left rose to about waist height, and I opened my hand. I hear her laugh merrily, but not even her amusement could get her to lower her guard. It was frustrating.

"What kind of stance is that? That's not what I taught you," she asks me, a mixture of confusion and annoyance in her voice. I know she was doing me quite the favor by even being here with me today, but I wasn't going to be completely like her. I would never beat her that way.

"You're right, it isn't. But I did manage to throw you with it," I remind her. Her style is impressive, but I believe that it could be brought to even greater heights if I add my own touches. She tells me I'm reckless for thinking this way, but I don't plan on changing my stance, unless it starts to work against me.

"I remember. Well then. If you trust that you can do it again, then give it your best shot!" she invites. Her hands move forward and she beckons me, a challenge from one warrior to another. I grin, clenching my fist harder. My feet begin to move, propelling me towards her smiling face.

My right fist sails towards her cheek, an area that I have yet to come into contact with. I instantly regret my hasty attack the second I see her head and shoulders move to the left.

Everything moved so fast from there. I feel her left hand snake around mine, locking it in place. I try to swing my left hand towards her, but she is already moving. She leans over backwards, planting her foot onto my midriff and throwing me forward. She rolls on her back and leaps to her feet, already facing me by the time I hit the ground.

The mat under me hisses softly as my weight forces air out of the padding. It didn't hurt, but as I lay flat on my back and stare at the bright lights streaming down from the gym ceiling, I can't help but feel humiliated.

"What move was that?" I had to ask. Her way of teaching was trial and error. I would mix and match different moves I'd learned in the past and use them against her. Each and every time I would be deflected, locked, and thrown like I was nothing. Then she would tell me the name of the move and how to defend against it.

"That one? Oh, it's a little something I call the Tomoe Nage. Did you like it?" she replied, acting like these moves were something you talk about over lunch. That's just how she is. Even at her young age, she is the strongest person I know. She's always the top of her class in any form of hand-to-hand combat she chooses to study, including Karate, Judo, and her personal style, Danzan-ryū.

A deceivingly dainty hand appears in my field of vision, attached to the girl I knew and admired. Her short, shoulder length black hair obscures her vision as she offers her hand to me. I consider knocking it away, but I know how bad that would make me look. I smile back at her and take it, allowing her to help me to my feet.

My name is Kerrich Verne, a college freshman attending Kennesaw State University. I want to major in computer science, since I've always had a knack for programming and gaming. That being said, someone like me practicing martial arts in a smelly gym doesn't make any sense, does it?

"You look beat. Did I take it too rough on you?" she teased, her head tilting slightly to one side. Although it sounds a little lame when I say it here, but I'm only doing this because of her.

Her name is Priscilla. In my opinion, that's a name typically suited for a dainty princess type girl or whatever. Maybe that's because the first time I ever heard the name was on an old video game, where it was attached to a princess. But what I'm trying to say is, her name does not suit her. There's only one way to describe Priscilla. She's a total badass.

"Even if I say yes, you'll just turn around and say that you weren't even trying," I say, panting. I smile when I see that my comment made her laugh. She and I had been friends for a very long time. We first met when we were both toddlers, discovering the ways of the world for the first time. Since then, we've always stuck together.

"Oh Ker, you know me so well," Priscilla replies. I chuckle, trying to regain my breath before she decides to throw me again. Martial arts are one of her passions, to be honest. She spends more time practicing different locks and throws than she does studying for her classes. She wants to major in physical therapy, which is an odd choice of majors if you ask me.

"Hey, do you think we can be done for now? I have to revise my research paper before Tuesday's class," I ask, giving her my best attempt at an apologetic expression. We've been at this for almost three hours now, so believe me when I say my lungs feel like a forge bellows.

"I guess that's fair. It can't be fun getting your ass kicked by a girl for three hours straight." Priscilla gives me this face where she smiles cheekily and stares at me from the corner of her eyes. It's the one I usually see accompanying a joke, usually at my expense.

I heave a sigh of relief. What I really need right now is a long soak in the tub back at my college dorm. Every time I get home after one of these sessions, my body feels like it's going to die from exhaustion. After all, I'm a computer guy. My body really isn't in the best shape.

Even though I'm wearing a thin layer sleeveless shirt, I'm still covered in a thick layer of sweat, causing the fabric to stick to my skin. It feels disgusting, but I don't complain. Priscilla hates whiners, so if I speak up about my discomfort, she will probably use it as an excuse to throw me again.

Priscilla also dressed for the heat she knew she'd be dealing with. Her outfit is super sexy, I don't mind saying. She's wearing this pair of tight black pants and a black sports bra. That's it. If you're a guy like me, you know how fucking awesome that is.

I strip off the leather gloves from my sweaty palms, throwing them in my messenger bag adorned with the face of one of my favorite anime characters. We use these gloves to soften to impact of our punches, though in the long run it still hurts like a bitch whenever Priscilla's fists hit me. It's not that she is particularly strong, but she knows where to hit.

"You wrote your paper on the effects of music on the mind, right?" she suddenly speaks up. I kneel down so I can wrap my fingers around the strap of my bag. She's asking me about my research paper, the one I used as an excuse to leave. I suppose I can't blame her for asking. She just wanted to make sure I wasn't just blowing her off. I wasn't of course. Today is Monday, and I need to revise this paper before 5 pm tomorrow.

"Yeah. It's one hell of a lame topic, but at least the rough draft scored well." I lift my bag and drape the strap over my left shoulder. The strap pushes down on me, which I know will start to hurt later, but for now I can bear it. I see Priscilla donning a shirt again to my great disappointment, but it only made sense. She can't just walk around in public wearing so little.

"You could have picked a worse topic, if you ask me. I heard one guy is writing about the proficiency of men being slightly better than women in a certain job," Priscilla informs me. I can't help but snicker a little at this nameless guy's misfortune. You see, my English professor is a woman. She also happens to be a major feminist, which means I have to work twice as hard to keep up with the women in the class.

"He has to be trolling her. He's screwed if he turns that in." I begin to walk towards the gym exit, though I make sure to move slow enough so that Priscilla can catch up to me.

"Agreed. You'd have to be stupid to mess with that old pistol." She easily catches up to me as we walk through the double doors. I let out a contented sigh when I feel the cool evening air come into contact with my skin.

The campus wasn't as crowded as it was during the noon hours, but there were still plenty of people out an about. I can hear the gentle hum of conversations, the muted roar of a passing motorcycle, and other everyday sounds. There's a breeze in the air this evening. As it sweeps through my damp hair, I feel content. Walking back to my dorm with my best friend; I can't ask for anything more.

"Do you smell rain?" Priscilla inquires. I look over to her and I can see her sniffing the air, almost like a cat. It's very cute, but I make sure not to stare overlong. You know, because that's rather creepy.

I don't understand what she means by "smelling" rain, but it does feel rather humid out here. There's not a single cloud in the sky above me, but I can see one hell of a storm brewing in the distance. I squint slightly, trying to get a better view of the massive storm front. I want to see which way it's moving, so I can prepare accordingly.

"I don't know what rain smells like, but there's one hell of a storm heading this way." I point up at the unusually fast moving thunderclouds that were clearly heading straight for the campus. Priscilla gazes in the direction I indicate, and shrugs.

"Good. I could use a shower," she jokes. I snort with laughter. No kidding. My shirt is discolored all over by sweat, and I'm sure I smell like a wet dog.

I blink, and suddenly I notice that the clouds are moving towards us at an insanely fast speed. As soon as I notice that, a wall of wind gusts through the area, ruffling through my short brown hair and making it hard to see in front of me.

"What the fuck?" I whisper, half to myself and half to Priscilla. This can't be a simple run-of-the-mill thunderstorm. No simple rainstorm can move like that. I don't know what this means, but I think I can expect gale force winds and possibly tornadoes.

"You're right. That really is a storm from hell," she comments, her pace picking up. I begin to walk faster myself, trying to keep up with her. I'm pretty worried here, and perhaps a bit scared. The clouds are already overtaking us, and I only spotted it a few minutes ago. This can't be right.

"Priscilla, I think we should get to shelter, and fast." Lightning begins flashing from within the cloud, followed by loud thunderclaps. That's when the rain begins to fall. It starts off as a light drizzle, and then it progresses to a freaking torrent of water pouring down on me. We are instantly soaked. The rain is cold, so we start to shiver.

"Agreed. My car is up there in the parking lot, so I'm going to head there," Priscilla tells me. Her hair is completely drenched in the downpour, so it looks like she just got out of the shower.

I can see people covering themselves with their jackets, or their umbrellas, or sometimes even their binders, and then running for the nearest building. I wish I could do the same, but I want to get to my dorm as soon as I can so I can finish my paper.

"Go then, and be safe. My dorm is still a ways up from here," I tell her. Priscilla gives me this smile. She steps forward, and I can see that she wants to hug me goodbye. Instinctively, I reciprocate the motion and wrap my arms around her. I can feel her arms around me and I can't help but wish she'd kiss me goodbye instead. We don't have that kind of relationship, sadly.

"Get home safe then. See you!" Priscilla runs across the street towards the parking lot she pointed out earlier. I watch her go for a few seconds, but then a really bright cloud to ground lightning bolt hits pretty damn close to campus. I clamp my hands over my ears as the huge crash of thunder echoes through campus. That was too close. I need to run.

I break into a run, threading through the panicking people on the sidewalk who were still running for shelter. I nearly run into a few of the slower ones, much to my annoyance.

Lightning again blinds me for a split second before I can see the actual bolt, and I notice that it struck within campus. This only serves to send a bolt of adrenaline through my body. I begin to sprint, crossing a concrete bridge that passes over a road leading to a parking garage. I cross another bridge that spans the exit to the highway.

Now I'm in front of the University Village Suites, which is the campus name for the freshman dorms. I live in there, but I need to cross around the clinic to reach the back entrance, which is closest to my dorm.

I take the opportunity to run underneath a stone balcony that hangs over the clinic entrance. My clothes are dripping wet, as if I just jumped into a pool. Shivering, I look up at the dark sky, watching lightning flash constantly. That's when I see it.

It isn't a tornado, but I can see something just as if not more unsettling than that. There is a hole in the sky. I'm not talking about the eye of the storm or any of that crap, because that implies that this is a hurricane, which is impossible. We are too far inland to be hit by anything other than the outskirts of a hurricane, so there has to be another explanation for the hole. The hole is also too small to be an eye. It's probably about the size of the parking lot.

"What the fuck?" My eyes widen in shock and fear. Yeah, I admit that I'm freaking scared. At least a tornado would have been something familiar. I've never heard of anything like this. I can't even see anything through the hole. It's just black. Well, almost black. Flashes of lightning that illuminate the inside of the hole briefly light it up, but it only shows me more blackness.

"Screw this shit!" Now I begin to panic. I don't know what that hole means for me or the other people on campus, but I'm sure as hell not staying here to find out. I break into a sprint, leaving my shelter and heading for the back entrance to the dorms. My only thought was that if I could get inside, I would be safe. I realize my mistake the second I leave cover.

My stomach begins tingling, sort of like the feeling you get when you fall a few feet. I'm pretty sure I'm not falling, which tells me that something else is going on. Next, I start feeling…I'm not sure how to describe this, but I suddenly feel myself growing lighter.

I can see myself getting closer to the door, but I'm finding it harder and harder for my feet to gain traction on the ground. Suddenly, I find it impossible to move forward at all. I look down and my jaw drops. I'm starting to float!

My first instinct is to grab the edge of the nearby bench to keep myself from floating any higher. This can't be happening. This is physically impossible! Gravity can't just switch on and off like a light bulb!

The pull increases on my entire body, and soon I'm hanging by one hand, everything turning upside-down. I look around frantically to see that none of the other students are having this problem. So it's just me? Why am I falling into the sky while everyone else is completely unaffected?

"No!" My hand begins to slip off of the slick edge, and suddenly my hands can't find any purchase. I don't want to die, so I try as hard as I can to hold on, but I realize in desperation that I'm fighting a losing battle.

My hand finally loses its grip, and I start floating upwards towards the sky. I flail my limbs about, trying to correct my position so that I won't have to look at the world upside-down any more.

When I finally manage to do this, I try to catch my bearings. I was starting to hyperventilate, but I do what Priscilla taught me to do in stressful situations. I force myself to breathe in deeply, but my intense feeling of fear doesn't dissipate.

I look down to see that I'm already above the roof of the dorms, which is saying something, considering that they are four stories tall. I can see practically half of the campus from here. The first thing I do is look for Priscilla's car. I glance rapidly over the campus, until I see it.

Priscilla's black corvette is lying on its side, crashed, on the edge of the road that leads out of campus. It is on fire and smoking. I let out a shocked gasp. I can't see her moving around, so I assume the worst.

"Prisciiiiillllaaa!" I scream down at the car, hoping with all of my heart that she will just hop out of the car and wave up at me like nothing is wrong. That doesn't happen, and my mood instantly turns to one of depressed rage. I'm not the sort of guy that cries, but instead I vent my grief through anger.

"WHY? WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU TAKE HER FROM ME?" My throat strains as I scream louder than I ever thought I could. It hurts to keep screaming, but I don't care. My best friend is gone, killed by this accursed storm.

Why is this even happening? It had been a completely normal day up until this point, and now everything was going to hell. Priscilla is dead, her car is wrecked, and I'm floating into the fucking sky! What the hell is going on?

I remember my own plight and I look up, trying to see where I was going. I choke in fear as the first thing I see is the hole in the sky directly above me. The way things are going now, I will fly right into it.

It feels like I'm staring into death itself. It's almost like there's a whirlpool in the sky that's sucking me in. I can see the lightning inside the hole flashing constantly. The electricity in the air begins causing the hair on my body to stand up.

Then I become aware of a strange yellow glow permeating the air around me. I look around for the source, but I can't see anything that can be considered as such. I wave my hands in an attempt to turn myself around, but that's when I notice my hands. They are covered in a translucent yellow aura, which I assume to but causing the yellow glow. I look at my body to discover that it is in fact me that is glowing so brightly.

"What in the name of all that's fuck is happening?" I shout. Suddenly, the speed of my ascent begins to speed up. I pass through the hole in the sky, and I find myself in complete darkness. I still feel myself rising at an increasingly fast pace, but the only thing I can see are the walls of the hole when they become lit by flashes of lightning.

The air flying past my face gets more and more violent, and I realize that I am literally going faster than the speed of sound. As the air quality begins to diminish, I let out one last scream.

* * *

I'm a very deep sleeper, you see. It always takes me a good thirty minutes or so for my body to even realize that it's waking up, and this was no exception.

I moan softly and adjust my position so that I'm more comfortable. My match with Priscilla left me wiped out, so I really deserved this sleep. That's when I realize that I'm not lying on my bed.

Something is tickling my cheeks and arms. It feels almost like…grass? That can't be right. The only grass on campus is in small patches on the side of the road, in the small clearing in front of my dorm, and the massive park known as the campus green. I'm not crazy enough to lie down in those places, so I'm not sure what happened.

Suddenly I remember. My eyes open in an instant and I shoot up, taking in my surroundings. Suffice to say, I'm not on campus anymore.

Actually, I'm in the middle of nowhere. I've apparently been lying in this grass field for a while, but I don't even know where here is. I stand up so I can get a clearer view of the landscape. I'm standing in the middle of a grassy expanse of land atop a cliff. I knew it was a cliff since I could see what looked like a city out in the distance.

I shiver as my soaking wet clothes stick to my skin. I guess the fact that I had just been in a storm hadn't changed at all. That makes me think. If my clothes were still wet, that meant that the storm had actually happened. By that logic, it meant that I actually had floated through the sky and into a hole in the clouds. But that didn't make any sense.

How did I end up in this place I've never seen before by flying through some cloud? I frown, thinking hard. There's only one possible explanation. Somehow, I was attracted to the hole in the sky, which transported me to this place. However, if I accept that I was transported to some foreign place, then I must also accept that my best friend Priscilla was dead.

Now, don't take me for some sort of heartless jerk who doesn't cry for his friends. Priscilla was very dear to me, but I promised to myself a long time ago that I would never cry, for any reason. The only thing I can do for her right now is remember the good memories I've shared with her over the years.

No matter where I am now, the first thing I need to do is facilitate my survival. I have some money on me, contained in my waterproof wallet in my back pocket, so I can buy myself some food in that city nearby.

I've made my decision. I'm going to that city that I can see over the top of the cliff. I walk up to the cliffside, intending to get a closer look at the city.

It's one hell of a city, that was for sure. The most striking feature of the city in my opinion is the giant cathedral situated smack-dab in the center of it all. I don't know much about architecture, so I can't tell the difference between Gothic and English influence. But if I had to guess, I'd say that the cathedral was a mix between the two styles.

Now, let me describe the rest of the city that lay below me. The city is split up into four sections, at least as far as I can tell. The first section consists of the cathedral as well as the surrounding buildings. What divides this section from the others is a large river that isolates it on all sides from the other sections except for a few bridges. That being said, there is another section just to the left of the cathedral section, but there doesn't seem to be anything of note in that section except for a few scattered buildings.

The third section is the largest, surrounding the upper and rightmost edges of the cathedral section in an L shape. There is a bunch of different types of buildings in that section, but I don't know what purposes they serve. The last section is a fairly small one located on the upper edge of the third section, which I will hereby refer to as the L section. There is a building much larger than the rest in the city in the center of that section, second only to the cathedral.

What the hell am I supposed to do? I have no idea where I am or how I got here, and the only thing I have to go off of is my need for food. Actually, there was one singular question on my mind, so I decide to just go ahead and say it out loud.

"Where the fuck am I?" I scream to the sky.

* * *

Okay, so now is the time to get moving. I'm not stupid enough to throw myself off that cliff, so I need to look for another way down. I end up discovering that the only way down is by way of a smaller hill to the left a bit.

Directing myself to that path, I plod forward. The sun is shining brightly, which I'm thankful for. The clothes I'm wearing are literally dripping all over the place. I hate wet clothes. Seriously. I can't even move without feeling the wet fabric sticking to my skin in uncomfortable places.

All right, I'm getting sick of this. I take off the stupid wet shirt and wring it out. A veritable torrent of water pours from it. Whatever that stupid hole in the sky had taken me to, you'd think it would have the decency to dry my clothes for me. Listen to myself. I'm already considering this entire situation normal.

The shirt is too damp to put back on, so I sling it over my shoulder and keep walking. I haven't seen any signs of life so far, so its not like I'd offend anyone if I ran around shirtless.

Actually, this whole situation reminds me a lot of Final Fantasy XIII, to be honest. I mean, I'm walking in a beautiful plain with rolling hills and green grass, and everything's pretty…and what the fuck. Seriously, I'm glad I can't see any treasure balls or save points, because then I 'd know I'm in the game.

Part of me is hoping that Priscilla had spiked my drink with really potent LSD or something, and I'm really just having one seriously fucked up dream. Well, it is the whole falling into the sky thing that is really fucked up, but this natural landscape is pretty nice.

Anyhow, I manage to reach the bottom of the cliff. Now before I freak out wondering what I need to do next, I decide to look around.

There is a cobblestone road in front of me, winding around the hills to my left and running to the city to my right. So, what to do now. I've already decided that I'm going to that city, so I head in that direction. It's still a good ways away. The only reason I can tell that this road leads to the city is because I could see it in the distance over the cliff, and this road heads in that general direction.

I guess I should start moving. Who knows how long it will take me to reach the city? I begin walking, taking note of the sun's position in the sky. I notice that my phone is still in my pocket, surprisingly.

Pulling it out, I flip it open to see that it still works. I sigh in relief and begin dialing a number, only to see that there's no service. What the fuck? Everywhere on earth should have cell phone service of some sort, unless I'm in Africa or something?

The time on the phone is frozen as well, stuck at around six. That doesn't at all. What's the point of having a phone if it doesn't work? Huh. Maybe I can get some money for it at least.

So as I walk, I run into a few travelers passing the other way. They are giving me the strangest looks, which I do not appreciate at all. Freakin' jerks, who the hell do they think they are, looking at me like that? Of course, the fact that I'm shirtless and my body is soaking wet may contribute to their staring, but still. None of their business. Sometimes I really hate people.

But that being said, I started seeing some pretty strange things myself. One time, a man drove by on top of a car. Yeah. On top. What the hell kind of person drives a car by sitting on top of it? That's not even the weirdest part. The man wore a cord that's attached to his wrist, and it seemed to be sucking something from him. It may have been blood, I don't know. I don't really want to know.

Then there was the carriage being pulled by some sort of purple…ox…boar…thing. I mean what the fuck was it? It was bright purple! No joke! What in the…wow I need to chill. So I was beginning to think that I was transported to a whole other world. There's no such thing as a purple boar thing, so the fact that there's one passing along the street like nothing's wrong supports that theory. In fact, I decide to find out for certain.

"Hey! Excuse me," I call to a passing traveler. He stops and looks at me, again staring at my strange attire.

"Who are you, a Gray wannabe?" the man says to me in a joking tone. I don't understand what that means, so I just roll with it.

"Yeah! Isn't it the coolest thing?" I tell him, earning a chuckle from the traveler. That's good. At least I feel like I accomplished something. "Say can you help me out?"

"What can I do for you?" the man asks, giving me a curious glance. Well, if this is another world, then the inhabitants are nice as far as I can tell. I rub my head, pretending that I have a headache. This is to enhance the lie I'm about to tell.

"I uh…I hit my head a little too hard over by the cliff, and I'm forgetting things left and right. Can you tell me the name of the country?" I lie, acting nervous and uncertain. Which of course I am, so it isn't really an act. So I'm nervous and uncertain, acting like I'm nervous and uncertain. What is this, inception?

"Ooh ouch…I'm sorry to hear that. But you are in Fiore now, about a mile away from Magnolia Town," the traveler tells me, wincing as he presumably envisioned my "plight." I nod and thank the man before moving on.

So where the hell is Fiore on earth? I've never heard of a country like that, and I received an A in geography. Maybe I can find out more in Magnolia Town. Which is a mile away. Fuck, I hate walking.

Things start getting a bit sketchy as I walk past a large copse of trees by the side of the road. Let me make something clear. I hate forests. Yeah, they're pretty and all, but I've watched too many damn horror films and YouTube videos centering on forests. Let me just give an example here. Slenderman. Jesus fucking Christ.

So me being the nerd I am, I take a quick look in the forest, looking for any sign of our favorite business suit wearing entity. But I'm just being silly. I know I'm not going to see anything. Anyhow.

I spot a large group of people moving down the trail in my direction. They seem to be centered around a group of carriages being pulled by those strange purple goat things. Wait, they are oxen. Or bulls. Or what the fuck ever.

Who knows what they're carrying. I was about to walk past them when suddenly, there was a loud shout from the forest. I couldn't tell what the speaker said, but that doesn't matter. What matters are the giant spikes of metal that start shooting out of the woods and impaling each of the purple boars.

My jaw drops as everyone around the caravan panics and begins running around. What the hell is happening? What kind of fiend can throw out such powerful metal spikes just like that? Maybe the perpetrator was using a medieval scorpion. But even then, the bolts wouldn't be that huge.

Without thinking, I run up to the first carriage, wincing at the blood that is pouring out of the boar's side, where the metal pierced it. My first thoughts, when I did think, are…what just happened? Who could kill these boars, and why? How did they produce such powerful weapons?

"Hey, kid! You need to run! The Rusted Blades are here!" an old man screams at me as he exits the carriage nearest to me. Nothing he said makes any sense to me, so I turn to him in an attempt to get some answers.

"What are the Rusted Blades? What's going on?" I ask him, but he's already running for the hills. Turns out, judging from the footsteps I'm hearing from behind me, I'm about to find out for myself.

I turn around to see a group of incredibly sketchy looking people. I see a man who's bald, another who's wearing an eye patch, and still more with strange attire that only tells me that I've run into trouble.

"Hey, Lance! He doesn't even know who we are!" the bald man jeered, stepping up beside the man at the front. This guy, who is supposedly Lance, was dressed differently than the others. Okay, so he's got this really short black hair, that kinda needs to be combed. A lot. He's got these dark eyes that aren't fixed on me, actually. He seems to be focused on the carriages, though I don't know why. He killed the only thing really interesting about them. He's wearing a set of jeans that are covered in holes and scrapes, which just makes him look stupid in my eyes. That stupidness is only increased by the fact that his shirt is just plain black, and he's wearing a cape. Yeah. A cape. Who the fuck wears a cape in public? Apparently Lance does.

"That doesn't matter," Lance snaps, completely ignoring my presence. The people who had been traveling with the carriage were now completely gone, having scattered. Lance's words incited murmurs and mutterings within his little "posse."

"Lance…he's standing in our way," the guy with the eye patch says. I begin to think that rushing in without thinking wasn't exactly a good idea. I start looking for a way out, but the group of people is moving to surround me. With the carriage at my back, I can't move. This isn't good at all.

"I don't care. Search these carriages for jewels and let's get out of here. Those people are probably contacting the military," Lance commands his…what are they, friends? Men? Subordinates? However, the fact is, they are trying to steal from those people. Now, I may be a nerd, but that doesn't mean I can just stand by and let that happen.

"I don't think so," I finally say, catching their attention. Now they seem shocked. Especially Lance. Lance is giving me this look like, "there's a bug talking to me…." And it was just making me angry.

"What…did you say?" Lance asks me in a dangerously soft voice. I gulp down my fear, since this guy looks pretty tough. However, I have faith in what Priscilla taught me, so I think I can best this guy.

"I said no. You aren't robbing anyone," I reiterate. Lance just gazes at me for a few seconds before he and his minions start laughing uproariously. I can feel a vein twitching in my forehead, which is probably because I'm furious. I hate it when people laugh when I'm being serious. This was no exception.

The laughter dies down, and Lance's expression turns dark. He growls and steps up to me slowly, and I go into a defensive stance, one that Priscilla had shown me.

When Lance throws his first punch at me, I'm ready for it. His right fist zooms through the air towards my face, but I'm already moving my head out of the way. Just like Priscilla had shown me, I retaliated by reaching out my left hand and intertwining it with his right arm. Predictably enough, his left fist comes towards me as well, but I lean back and plant my right foot into his midriff. Letting myself fall to the ground, I throw his entire body over my head, so that he crashes into the carriage.

His minions go quiet with shock as their boss lets out this shout of pain from within the wreckage of the carriage. I'm feeling pretty good about myself for executing such a move so well. I grin and gaze over at the rest of the minions. I go into a very confident stance, beckoning them forward. However, when they start whispering and pointing to something behind me, I can't help but look.

"You've got some moves, kid," Lance grudgingly admits as he climbs out of the carriage. The throw I used on him wouldn't do all that much damage, but it seems like the carriage was what really hurt him. He's got all these scratches on his face and arms now, which were probably caused by the broken glass and splintered wood.

Though I just have to point something out. He's wrong. He's acting all uppity by calling me a kid and telling me I have "moves." However, I only used one move. How can he possibly know if I have "moves" if I only used one? People. I think about pointing that out to him, but decide better of it. I'm already in deep shit as it is.

I rotate my body to face him, returning to my defensive stance. Lance snickers derisively and leaps to the ground, his fist clearly aimed for me. I jump backwards, towards the crowd of minions, who make way for me. Apparently they don't want to interfere with their boss's fight.

Lance just scoffs when he realizes that he missed me. My eyes are fixed on him, watching him intently. I want to make sure I can predict and prevent his next move before it can hurt me.

"I didn't think I'd have to use this on a pathetic kid," Lance complains, stretching his arms to his right and placing a clenched fist on an open hand. What is he doing? I've never seen Priscilla use any moves like this. "Iron-make…"

I don't understand what "Iron-make" means, but I think I can assume it's the name of an attack. That's when it happened. The air around Lance's hands begins to glow and contort into a gray circle, covered in runes that I can't make out.

"What the hell?" I whisper to myself as I watch Lance's face screw up in concentration. The circle around his hands begins to grow, and I can feel some sort of pressure in the air that is really starting to push me down.

"Fist!" Lance roars, and he brings his hands forward and opens them, pointing them in my direction. The circle around his hands follows his motions, and then something came out of the circle. It's moving really fast, so the only thing I see before it hits me is a grayish blur, and then pain erupts from my chest as whatever it is collides with my body.

There's so much force behind his attack, that I can't even hope to keep my footing. The crowd of people behind me split apart as I fly backwards, tumbling back across the road and into a tree.

Fuck, I'm totally winded. I can hear them laughing at me, but all I can focus on is the hellish pain in my chest. It's like one of Priscilla's punches had hit me, except her fist was made of steel or something.

I try to move, but I can't. I'm a computer guy, so my endurance is practically shit. The only reason I'm stronger than the average nerd is my practices with Priscilla. I glare up at Lance, who is chuckling and walking towards me slowly.

"How'd you like my Iron Creation magic?" Lance brags. I hear his words and blink in confusion. Magic? He thinks he used some sort of magic? Well, granted, that circle was an odd thing to see, but I'm pretty sure that with a few mirrors and lasers, you can easily create something like that with a little work. But here he was bragging about his attack like it was magic. Please. There's no such thing.

"Magic? Magic doesn't exist!" I spit back at him. Lance adopts this dumbfounded expression that looks so comical, that I just have to grin. What, didn't he know this already?

"Are you seriously kidding me?" Lance asks me in a serious tone. I just look at him, my expression changing to one of confusion. "Don't tell me you actually believe that."

"Well of course! Magic is a thing of fairy tales!" I snap back at him, though inwardly I was confused as all hell. I was starting to believe that this Lance actually believes that he has magic. He's crazy! People like that usually end up in asylums.

Lance just blinks, and then he and his group bursts into hysterical laughter. Wait, so his entire group believes in magic? Why are they all looking at me like I'm insane?

My breath finally comes back, so I rise to my feet while they are still laughing. Fuck chivalry, I'm going to take this condescending bastard out right now. I let out a yell and charge at Lance with my right fist poised to strike. Lance stops laughing as he sees me coming, and once again goes back to that strange pose.

"I don't think so, kid! Iron-make…Grand Tower Shield!" Lance shouts, and right before my eyes, a huge plate of sheet metal materializes in mid air. My punch collides with it and pain bursts through my hand like wildfire. I can see stars as I reel back, cursing and waving my hand about.

"Fuck! What the fuck…ow!" I moan, nursing my aching hand. Lance tosses the sheet of metal aside, accidentally smacking one of his own men in the head and knocking him out cold.

"So by your statement, you must not have any magic. There's no way you can beat me," the man brags, spreading his arms confidently. I ignore him for the moment; my face is too busy being screwed up in an expression of pain. My hand, my fucking hand! I feel like I just punched a solid wall!

Something is definitely going on. This man Lance is either really good at special effects, or he's actually using magic. But magic doesn't exist. It never has, and never will exist! Science has ruled that you can't create matter out of nothing! It's impossible! Not even through a chemical reaction can metal appear out of the air. So one of his men must have thrown the sheet metal over to Lance, who then used it to block my punch.

"Try your tricks now! They won't work again!" I declare confidently, swinging at him again with my left fist. This time, the fucker just dodges. "I knew it! You don't have any other bullshit 'magic' to save you!"

Lance just gives me this disbelieving look. Either that, or he was telling me to shut the hell up without words. But then his hands go back to that strange pose that he always seems to use right before he used one of his tricks.

"Kid, seriously. Just shut up. Iron-make…Speeding Train!" he yells. Nothing happens at first, so I grin in triumph as my fist nears his face. However, then some…_thing _hit my side. And it fucking hurt. Like a bitch. Actually it felt like…well…it felt like a speeding train hit me.

So next thing I know I'm tumbling end over end across the ground and yelling in pain the whole time. This feels nothing like his other attacks. And I'm starting to believe that he isn't using any tricks. Not even if his minions help, there's no way to accelerate that kind of mass that much in such a short time. Was he actually using magic?

"I'm not done yet! Iron-make…Silver Thorns!" Lance adds, and I wince, expecting something even more painful. Suddenly I'm pinned to a tree. How the fuck did this happen?

Groaning from the pain in my aching body, I look down at myself. I'm pinned halfway up a tree by hundreds of tiny little spikes made of some sort of metal. I'm just going to go ahead and assume that they are made of iron. I mean, what else could they be, considering how Lance keeps screaming Iron-make all the time?

"Good job, boss!" one of the men surrounding Lance cheers.

"Look at him! Haha!"

"How pathetic!"

"Stupid kid!"

My face starts turning red from shame. I still don't understand how I was beaten. Sure, I'm a computer guy with hardly any strength, but I've still trained under someone far better than I am. You'd think I'd at least know what hit me.

They are jeering at me, and one of them even threw a knife at me. It didn't hit me, but it was pretty damn close. So, how the hell am I going to get out of this? I'm struggling, but these thorns are practically soldered into the tree. I'm completely stuck.

"Now, what to do with you," Lance thinks aloud, which only serves to inspire his men to loudly suggest different ways of killing me. None of them sound pleasant at all, but there's not really much I can do. "I know just what to do. I'll use my favorite execution method. Iron-make…"

That's when someone else stumbles onto the scene. Well, stumbled isn't exactly accurate. The guy that shows up on the road next looks like he wants to be here, and his eyes are fixed on Lance, a confident grin on his face.

"Who the hell are you?" Lance shouts over to the man. Huh. I think it would be a good idea to take in the new guy's appearance. In case I need to thank him if by some miracle he saves me. First, he's got this incredibly long black hair. It's really untidy. I mean, it looks like someone took the mane off a lion, straightened it, dyed it black, and stuck it on this guy's scalp. It looks badass. I can't see what his eyes look like, other than they were glaring at Lance. His face is covered in tons of piercings. I mean like, huge ones too. These things were like, huge metal studs lining his face. There were three above each of his eyes, and three running down one side of his nose.

As for his clothes, he's wearing a set of khakis, complete with a set of black boots. As for a shirt, he's got a really long sleeveless shirt that is split at the bottom, so it doesn't cover his front. Along the sleeves and collars, there are more metal studs. This guy really likes his metal, I think. To top this all off, he's got a strange symbol on his shoulder that looks like some sort of bird, or even a fairy. With a really weird tail. Oh, and did I mention he's got metal studded gloves? Again with the metal!

"You the Rusted Blades?" the newcomers asks. His voice is deep and rugged, but not in the bad way. This guy looks like some sort of badass. I only hope he could kick these guys' asses.

"That we are. Who wants to know?" Lance answers, stepping forward aggressively. The other man isn't intimidated in the least. Instead, his grin grows larger.

"Looks like I can really cut loose then!" the man declares boldly, and starts running at the large group of men. Lance loses his patience.

"You know what? I don't care who you are. Men, take him out!" Lance orders. The second that order passes his lips, the men start pulling out swords and guns and start moving. It looks like they are trying to surround the newcomer, which would not be good if they succeed.

"That's more like it!" The newcomer comments as he reaches the mob of people who wanted to kill him. I, with my rational mind, think that there's no way one man can take down twenty. I'm wrong. Hoo boy, I am dead wrong.

"Club of the Iron Dragon!" the man roars, and his right hand transforms, in front of my shocked and disbelieving eyes, into what looks like an iron strut of some sort. That's not the best part. Then he swings his hand (strut?) forward like he's going to punch, and then the strut elongates to an impossible length, slamming into several of the men around him and sending them flying.

My jaw drops as he uses this technique over and over with each of his hands, completely annihilating anyone who comes into contact with him. What the hell is this world, where magic is considered normal and people brawl and steal on the roads?

Eye-patch guy and the bald guy are now the only two left. The one with the eye-patch, who I'll call Patch just because it's easier to say, has a sword. The bald guy, who I'll call baldy since I'm an ass, has what looks like a shotgun. They would look awesome if they didn't look scared out of their minds. I can't blame them either. This one man took out practically all of them and doesn't look any worse for wear.

"You're…you're…the Iron Dragon…" Patch stammers as the man's metal hands turn back to normal.

"Gajeel?" Baldy finishes, his hands shaking too hard for him to aim his shotgun right. I've never heard of this Gajeel guy in my life, but it seemed to me like he's pretty well known to those guys. Gajeel, if that is his name, doesn't say anything, and instead just continues to regard the two with a maniacal grin on his studded face.

Then Gajeel's right arm transforms into a huge barbed sword. He runs forward and swings it hard at Patch, who blocks it with his sword.

"Sword of the Iron Dragon," Gajeel's sword-arm suddenly begins to vibrate as the barbs on the blade start to travel along the length of the blade, like a chainsaw. Patch watches in shock as his sword is sliced in half.

"Have a load of this, you dragon wannabe!" Baldy roars, and I watch in horror as he pulls the trigger on his shotgun. Another one of those weird circles appears on the muzzle of the gun, only this time it's a green color. Then, bolts of green light shoot from the barrel and collide with Gajeel's shoulder.

As smoke covers Gajeel's form, I slump down, saddened. Gajeel, my would-be rescuer, has just taken a shot from a shotgun. I don't care what kind of shotgun you're using. At that range, nothing can survive.

"Nice gun." My head shoots up in shock as Gajeel zooms out of the smoke, completely unharmed, and slams a metal fist right into Baldy's face. How the fuck did Gajeel survive a shot like that from that range? He should be dead! What kind of fucked up world is this?

Patch chooses that moment to make a break for it, running for the trees. He never makes it that far. Gajeel just turns his head slightly and extends his metal strut thing all the way to the man, slamming into his side and knocking him into a tree.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. It's your turn," Gajeel declares, switching his attention to Lance, who was about as shocked as I was. Well, it's understandable. His men just got wiped out like they were nothing. Gajeel doesn't even have a scratch on him, not even from that shotgun blast! What kind of monster is he?

"Well, you are much stronger than I'd heard, I'll give you that," Lance compliments the man, the confident grin returning to his face. He goes into that strange pose that allows him to summon iron from nowhere, the circle appearing. "But not even you can stand up to my Iron Creation magic!"

"Gajeel! Watch out! He can summon iron from thin air!" I scream down to my would-be rescuer, who looks really bored for some reason. He finally glances up at me and raises an eyebrow, as if he's just noticing me for the first time now.

"Shut up, you're annoying," Gajeel replies nonchalantly. A vein twitches in my forehead. I was trying to help him out, and that's how he repays me?

"What? I was trying to help, you jackass!" I snap back at him, but he just ignores me. So much for being a rescuer. It just looks like Gajeel was here to fight.

"Iron-make…Speeding Train!" Lance shouts, his hands opening and shooting to the front. I see a large glowing silver circle like the one that's on Lance's hands appear a few feet away from Gajeel's side. Then, to my shock, a train locomotive made entirely out of grey iron emerges from the circle and streaks towards Gajeel at a high speed. That makes sense. So that was what hit me and nearly broke every rib in my body.

However, Gajeel just holds out his hand and stops the train in its tracks. As the train comes to an abrupt stop, there's a loud screeching. I cover my ears to try and block out that horrible sound, but my eyes are fully alert. But I still can't believe what I'm seeing. Is this Gajeel guy really that strong?

"Seriously? Iron Creation? What a bore," Gajeel complains, and then to my shock he turns and takes a bite out of the iron train.

"What the fuck?" I can't help but yell as he chews and swallows an entire mouthful of metal. Let me just take a moment to rant. Iron…is hard as fuck. That's why people in the medieval age used it to make swords to kill people. You can't chew iron, much less bite through it. So what the hell was this guy? Is he some sort of god or something?

"My train!" Lance screams, rather comically. I guess he's about as freaked out as I am. Gajeel takes another bite of the train before knocking the carapace aside.

"I thought I'd at least get a good fight out of this, but you are all trash," he scoffs, and then he moves his hands up to his mouth. His cheeks start puffing out, like he was taking in a huge breath or something.

Lance doesn't know what he's seeing either, since he's gazing at Gajeel like a scared puppy. Finally, I get over the fact that Gajeel is strange and realize that Lance is about to get his ass kicked.

"Hey, Lance! I hope Gajeel kicks your sorry ass!" I scream down at the man, who doesn't even look at me. I see Gajeel finish breathing in, and then comes the exhale. But it's like no exhale I've ever seen.

"Roar of the Iron Dragon!" Gajeel shouts, and then a huge swirling vortex of tiny blades emanates from the man's mouth. Lance doesn't even have time to scream before the razor vortex collides with him. To my shock, the blades slice into Lance's body like butter, splattering blood and bits of skin everywhere. Lance is sent flying backwards, where he comes to a stop on the side of the road, unconscious and bleeding.

I'm just speechless. So I get to this road and get my ass kicked by magic using thugs. Then Gajeel shows up and nahms on their iron and wipes the floor with all of them, and then starts walking away like its nothing. Wait, he's walking _away?_!

"Hey! What about me?" I demand, though I think I sound a little pitiful. Gajeel again raises an eyebrow, finally turning his full attention to me.

"What are you doing up there, kid?" he asks me. My eye starts twitching in irritation and disbelief.

"Oh, couldn't you tell? I'm totally enjoying the sights," I shoot back at him, the sarcasm just dripping from my tone. "Can you get me down?"

Gajeel gets my sarcasm, replying with a scoff. When I asked to be brought down, he just gives this little shrug. Then to my surprise, he just slams a metal strut right through the tree, causing it to fall. My eyes widen in fear and incredulity.

"I said get me down not the tree! FUUUUUUUCK!" I'm practically screaming my ass off as the tree I'm pinned to falls to the ground and lands with a crash. The impact jars me loose from the tree, although it rips several holes in my jeans. "You are one crazy son of a bitch, you know that?"

"Whatever, I'm going back now. Get some clothes or something," Gajeel replies uncaringly, walking back the way he came. I don't understand why he even came here. Did he just come for the fight? Is he that kind of guy?

"Wait, where are you going?" I call after him, but then I realize how stupid I sound. He's walking in the direction of Magnolia Town. It's obvious that this is where he's going. Gajeel must have realized that too, since he doesn't say anything back to me. He soon disappears over a hill in the road, leaving me alone with a bunch of unconscious thugs.

I start moving down the road after him, but it's slow going. I think I must have broken something, since my entire body is aching like nothing else. That bitch Lance was a real piece of work. I'm now covered in all these scratches and abrasions caused by those hits he dealt me.

So, let me take a moment to run things through my head. I'm in a country called Fiore. The city nearby is Magnolia Town. This country is somewhere in the 17th or 18th century, where they use both swords and guns. They also consider magic to be normal. How did I get here? I fell through a hole in the sky.

Can I just tell you that this doesn't make any sense?

* * *

Agh, chapter one finished. Writer's block hit me HARD rather soon in the story, which really pissed me off. Then I found out what my problem was. I was having trouble thinking up a way to introduce my character to someone in Fairy Tail this chapter, without having him join the guild too soon. So then my problem was thinking up a situation. I already knew that I wanted my character to get the shit beaten out of him since he doesn't know magic, but I had to think up a unique-ish magic for the guy who would do the beating, and think up which Fairy Tail character would save him. I ended up choosing Gajeel since he's awesome. Once I'd settled on Gajeel, I was able to think up a magic that he would be good against. Hence, Iron Creation. Hey, they have Ice Creation and Wood Creation, so why the fuck not?

Anyhow, I won't be updating this until I update my Golden Sun story. But by all means, leave me a review so I know how I did.

Next chapter will be in third person, introducing my own unique guild.

Keelah Se'lai!

Terran34


	2. Warehouse Fiasco

All right, I had a really nice reviewer express the need to see another chapter of this, so I decided to oblige. I'm going to switch POVs in this chapter, since I need to introduce a bunch of OCs. So instead of first person present, I'm writing this in 3rd person past, which is what I usually write in.

Also, I'm changing things. The time is set before the Edolas Arc, but after the Oracion Seis Arc. That way, Gajeel had his character developed during the Fighting Festival Arc, but I can still go through the awesomeness that is the Edolas Arc.

* * *

It was business as usual in the Cardinal City Tavern. On a Friday night, everyone was leaving work and heading home for the weekend, usually stopping by to grab a drink or two from the most popular bar in the town.

The bar itself was on the eastern side of Heartwood Square, which contained the most popular establishments the city had to offer. In fact, the square was easily considered the center of city life. Every road and pathway in the whole city led to the square, so naturally, the square itself was always crowded at every hour of the day.

Upon walking into the bar, the first thing one would see were the scattering of tables, where people would meet and exchange stories over a cold drink. On the far side of the room from the entrance was where the bar itself was situated. The countertop started on rightmost wall and stretched all the way to the middle of the far wall, where it made a ninety-degree angle turn and met with the wall. Bar stools were set up at regular intervals, giving people a place to sit while ordering.

Behind the bar, the back wall opened up into the kitchen, where even the customers could see the staff hard at work preparing everyone's meals in a timely fashion. Since the place was so popular, the bar was never short of employees. In fact, the place was currently overstaffed, so that the owner, Mr. Hester James, was forced to organize several shifts.

Next to the bar was a raised platform, similar to a stage. It was here that hired musicians would play songs for everyone to dance to every Saturday night. ON every other day of the week, Hester would place a special lacrima on-stage. When interacted with, this lacrima would randomly choose a song from its repertoire to play.

Today, since it was a Friday night, the place was jam-packed with people. The lacrima was playing a soft musical number, which was partially drowned out by the antics of the patrons. People weren't worried about working tomorrow, so drinks were being ordered at a high rate.

A lively poker game was taking place at one of the tables. The players kept score with light pens, forming a scoreboard in the air above them. Every so often a player would let out a groan or a yell of triumph, depending on the outcome of the current round. At another table, a man was arguing heatedly with another, who was dressed in a business suit.

In one corner of the bar, a drunken brawl between two people was taking place, while onlookers encircled them, placing bets and watching eagerly. A bouncer watched intently from nearby, ready to step in if things got too rough.

At the bar itself were the seats usually reserved for regulars. Currently, the seats were all filled, which caused other patrons to glare in jealously at those lucky enough to score one. At the bar, Hester himself usually served the ones seated there. This gave every dedicated patron an incentive to score a bar seat. Hester was a generous man who often extended discounts to his friends, so it wasn't that uncommon to see a race to the bar seats on these types of nights.

One man in his mid twenties shoved his way through the crowd, not even once moving to let another pass him. Once people began looking to see who was rude enough to disturb them, they began giving the man plenty of space, which is saying something in a place like this.

The man was wearing a sleeveless grey shirt that showed off his well-toned arms. Bulging muscles showed evidence of hard training, as well as warned the drunkards that this was not a man to cross.

Black, formfitting jeans covered his lower body, the ends tucking into black leather, laced boots that thudded against the ground with every step. Short black hair trimmed close to the scalp accented his even darker eyes. His brow was set in a stern expression, and his eyes never veered from his destination.

The man drew closer and closer to the bar. The unsuspecting patron sitting at a particular barstool didn't notice the warning signs as the man drew near. Gasps were heard, from both men and women, and the bar seats on either side of the patron were abandoned.

The patron finally decided to find out what all the fuss was about. Downing his drink, he turned in his seat to see the new arrival, whose dark eyes were fixed on the unlucky man.

"The fuck're you?" the obviously tipsy patron demanded. To everyone around him, that single question revealed that this man was not a regular, and thus didn't recognize the one standing before him.

"You're in my seat," the man growled tersely. Even Hester knew that this man was not to be trifled with, so the owner moved back into the kitchen, well out of the way. The patron slams his empty glass on the counter and curses, rather loudly. The man doesn't bat an eyelid, and continues to wait for the patron to move.

"Look, punk, I rode twenty miles to get here. I ain't movin' for no one!" the patron explained irritably. The man waited for the patron to finish speaking, and then he acted.

The man promptly grabbed the drunk patron by the collar of his shirt and lifted him clear off the seat, seemingly without expending any effort. Then, he threw the patron aside, where he rolled to a halt at the base of a nearby table.

His seat now empty, the man sat down at the bar. Hester saw the man and his face lit up with a smile. The owner walked up to the bar and approached the new arrival, already cleaning a glass for him.

"Evening, Victor! Good to see you back," Hester greeted the man enthusiastically.

Yeah," Victor grunted in reply. The man who had been thrown picked himself up from the ground and frantically skittered out of the building.

"What'll it be? The usual?" Hester asked, though he was already pulling down a bottle from the rack. When he received an affirmative nod, the owner cracked open the bottle and filled the glass to the brim. Then he slid it over to Victor, who grabbed it and instantly drained half the glass.

"I heard someone's looking for you, Vic," Hester mentioned, trying to start a conversation. Victor rested his cheek on his hand, bracing his elbow against the bar. He lazily glanced over at the owner and remained silent, waiting for the man to elaborate.

"Some guy by the name of Donnel supposedly dropped by during the night shift, asking for you," the owner related. Victor grew alert. The man took a sip of his drink and gave his full attention to Hester.

"Do you think he's with the council?" Victor demanded in a low whisper, urgency present in his deep voice.

"Your guess is as good as mine. Though my sources never warned me about any council mobilization, it's possible they might have sent an undercover agent," the owner speculated. Over to his right, a patron began calling for a refill. Since Hester was preoccupied with Victor, he ordered a waitress to deal with him.

"Where can I find this Donnel?" the man growled, gripping his glass all the tighter. Hester appeared to think for a second.

"Beats me, I never saw him," he admitted. Hester, although he owned the bar, went home for the night shift, explaining his lack of knowledge. The glass shattered in Victor's hand, sending shards of glass across the surface of the counter. Hester sighed and began cleaning up the remains, obviously used to this sort of occurrence. "There goes another glass. By the way, you can try asking Abigail. She's the one who told me."

The second a name left Hester's mouth, Victor stood up, knocking the bar stool aside, seemingly uncaring about the man standing near him that he knocked over with it. Victor knew Abigail, since she was a waitress at Cardinal City Tavern. They hadn't spoken often, though rumor had it she fancied him.

Luckily, she shared the same shift with Hester, so Victor knew she'd be around. She usually served the tables in the left most side of the bar, if one was facing the counter.

Victor stormed his way through the tavern, thankful for the fact that the people gave him enough space to move. His temper was known to be volcanic, and after a few experiences where buildings needed to be rebuilt and people needed to be hospitalized, people learned to give him a wide berth.

Abigail was currently standing against the wall, taking the order of a rather distracted young man who was staring at her breasts rather than looking at the menu. When she noticed Victor's approach, she smiled at him and reoriented her body so that she faced him. This interrupted the view of the young man, who became annoyed.

"Victor! How can I…Oh!" she began, but then let out a cry when his left hand slammed into the wall right beside her face. Her face swiftly turned a bright red when Victor's face moved close to her.

"You met Donnel. Who is he?" the man demanded. Abigail returned his question with a confused look at first, but quickly realized that it would be good for her well being if she answered him. Victor wasn't known for his patience.

"Well, I don't…exactly…know," Abigail squeaked out. She gulped nervously as she watched Victor's eyes narrow. The young man she had been serving, as well as several other onlookers, began watching the unfolding interrogation.

Victor removed his hand from the wall beside her head and then crossed his arms irritably. His expression betrayed his evident mistrust of her statement.

"Um…he spoke to me once or twice, asking mainly about you. He was…rather sinister looking," she finally said, giving in to that intense glare.

"I'm listening…" Victor grunted. Abigail nodded and cleared her throat. She was beginning to get used to the man's presence, and as she calmed down, she stuttered less.

"He was wearing all these different belts and things covered in lacrima, I think. He was also wearing this trippy looking cape thing. I hate capes, but he totally pulled it off…" Abigail began describing the man, but as she tended to do, she went off on a tangent. While others in the bar could deal with that, Victor couldn't. When he realized that all he was getting was a lesson in fashion, he stepped in.

"Get to the point, woman," he interrupted. Abigail stopped speaking, startled at his interruption. A few of the patrons around them that knew her chuckled quietly as they watched the scene unfold.

"Sorry…well he came in and bought me a drink, and asked me all this questions about you." Abigail finally got to the point, regaining Victor's interest.

"What kind of questions?" he demanded, without missing a beat. Her eyes moved up to the top of her head, as if she was trying to remember. Victor's hands twitched and rolled into fists, spurring her memory quite nicely when she saw them.

"At first he was presenting himself as an old friend of yours, but I didn't find that likely," Abigail started. Onlookers winced at her choice of words, because it sounded like she was implying that Victor had no friends. It was true as far as anyone could tell, because Victor was always seen alone. The man only raised an eyebrow, but waited for her to continue.

"He wanted to know how people view you, whether you keep your word, and what you do in your spare time, things like that," she explained. Victor's other eyebrow joined the first for a second before his expression turned pensive.

"Where did he go?" Victor's last question was the one Abigail was expecting, and surprisingly, she had a quick answer. She fished through her pockets and retrieved a small card, and then she handed it to him. He grabbed it from her rather brusquely and read it.

There was a hastily scribbled name at the top of the card, which Victor realized was "Donnel." Beneath that was an address. A wicked grin crossed his face. This, he could work with. Pocketing the card, Victor strode away from the perplexed Abigail, who let out a frustrated huff at his sudden departure.

"Isn't he even going to thank you? What a jerk," the young man next to Abigail commented, though he was obviously just trying to get on the waitress's good side. She shrugged in response, not surprised.

"Rogue wizards. You know what they're like," was her nonchalant response. The young man realized what she just said and set his drink down abruptly before he spilled it out of shock alone.

"That guy's a wizard?" That was the last thing Victor heard before they were out of his range of hearing.

* * *

Victor's next plan of action was to find this Donnel and find out what he wanted from him, and if necessary, end him so that he never revealed his secret to the council.

Victor stalked through the crowd that parted for him. The masses seemed to be thickening as the evening swiftly progressed into night. It wasn't a problem for him, but it did irritate him to see them acting so carefree.

Some of the people that were trying to get into the bar didn't recognize him, which only made him angrier, because they didn't know to move out of his way. Therefore, he was forced to shove his way through them roughly, not caring how rude it was.

Victor now found himself in Heartwood Square, with the moon rising in the dark sky. He let out a content sigh, preferring the darkness to the glaring heat of the daytime sun.

He looked down at the address on the card Abigail had given him, memorizing it in a few seconds. The numbers on it made no sense to him, but he was able to discern that Donnel's residence was somewhere in the storage district of town. This struck Victor as strange, since the storage district was a collection of worn down warehouses and abandoned buildings that were sold by greedy merchants to citizens seeking a place to store their possessions.

That being said, it was not unusual for the more paranoid citizens to hire mercenaries and thugs to guard their possessions for exorbitant amounts of money. Therefore, the area was one of the most dangerous parts of the city, where thugs and mercenaries frequently invaded the warehouses they were not contracted to guard, and often met resistance from the guards of the warehouse being invaded. It was a warzone during the night, and even repeated raids by the Fiore military weren't enough to quell the unrest.

"Looks like you found something." Victor instantly turned on the spot at the sound of the voice coming from behind him. He relaxed when he determined that it was just Hester.

"Why are you out of the bar?" the wizard questioned curiously. Hester just chuckled and took a swig from one of his own drinks.

"Remember? I don't do night shift," the bar owner reminded him. Victor turned back towards the center of the square, absentmindedly watching the people mix and meet.

"I don't think Donnel's from the council, but his questions were pretty invasive," the wizard finally confided to Hester, whose face turned grim.

"Then he might be working for one of your enemies. Maybe he's from Blue Pegasus. God knows you've clashed with them often enough," Hester suggested. Victor snorted derisively.

"Those freaks? No way. They're too busy chasing skirts to worry about me," the rogue wizard said dismissively, earning a laugh from the owner.

"Hah! True enough. Do you know where you're going at least?" Hester asked, gazing at Victor's face with a worried expression.

"Yeah, the storage district. Tonight is going to be fun," he answered, and then the wizard cracked his knuckles aggressively.

"Huh. No kidding," Hester concurred. He drew a pistol from his pocket, making sure Victor could see it. The wizard regarded the weapon with disinterest. It was obviously a magical weapon, judging by the miniature SE plug trailing off of the handle.

"I know I shouldn't worry about you, but you are one of my best agents. I wouldn't want to lose you," Hester began, but Victor shrugged and interrupted him.

"You'll only lose me if you stop paying me," the rogue wizard retorted dryly, Hester sighed impatiently, so Victor allowed him to continue.

"We have no idea what this guy wants, or how strong he is. I think I should go with you," the bar owner concluded. Victor just gave him a look that clearly said, "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"I think not. You'll just get in the way. Have you forgotten how I fight?" Victor reminded Hester, who sighed in response, pocketing the magic pistol once more.

"I guess I haven't. You come back, or you're not getting this month's pay," Hester joked, earning a scoff from the taciturn wizard.

Finally, Victor left the well meaning bar owner behind, moving through the square over to the southern exit.

The southern street led down through the southern residential district, before circling around South Central Park and splitting into three. As Victor entered the south street, he was just in time to see the city closing up for the night.

Light lacrima were extinguished as he walked by, plunging the street into darkness. Windows and doors were shut and locked as homes and shops were closed for the night, and anyone still on the street quickened their pace to get to their destination before it grew too much later.

The houses lining the side of the street rarely rose above two stories, but it was enough for Victor to gaze at them with jealousy. Silence fell upon the street, save for the occasional scurry of footsteps or the rustlings of rodents in the streets. It was a dismal atmosphere, but Victor liked it.

The streets were roamed by thugs and the like after dark, which was the main reason the citizens retreated to their homes and used magic to bar them from the outside every night. However, there was a clear balance of power in the streets.

Victor's mere presence in the streets caused the night lurkers to flee to different sections, hinting at previous incidents concerning the rogue wizard. Victor watched as man glanced out at him, and then fled back into the alley. He scoffed with a mixture of derision and disappointment. He hadn't had a good fight in a long time. This was one of the reasons he was actively hunting this man down.

The road ahead of him split into two, circling around the beginning of the sizeable park meant for recreation and exercise. Victor halted for a fraction of a second, trying to decide whether it would be quicker to cut through the park or to circle around. The former obviously appealed to him more than the latter, as proven by his resumed pace. Victor stepped onto the artificial grass, annoyed by the sensation of his boots sinking slightly into the earth.

The trees, as per usual in the summer season, were in full bloom. In South Central park, the trees were of the cherry variant, no doubt looking beautiful in the sunlight. Victor stomped past the creaking trees without even a glance. Nature was something that he tolerated, not enjoyed.

A young couple enjoying a late night kiss on a bench surrounding a small pond in the center of the park heard his approach and glanced his way. Their faces contorted with shock and fear and they wasted no time in scrambling over the bunch and running away into the night. Victor spared them one bitter glance before returning his gaze to the front.

As the moon reached the top of its path, pure shadow engulfed the city streets. Victor opened his mouth slightly and let the darkness fill his body. The air around his face began to twist and turn, forming a small whirlpool as pure shadow joined together and drained into his open mouth. Any fatigue that he might have been feeling disappeared in an instant, being replaced with strength.

When he left the park, he shut his mouth again, having absorbed all the strength he wanted at the moment. It was a good thing it was the shadow he enjoyed, as during the night, there was an unlimited amount of it. He was unstoppable when darkness fell.

As expected, the street split into three. Remembering the address, he turned down the street labeled with the number "3000." By entering this street, he was officially entering the warehouse district. The two story houses gave way to crumbling, rusted warehouses in need of a thorough cleaning. Signs of life also increased in the street as thugs and mercenaries continued their nightly battle over the possessions stored in the warehouses.

A group of three thugs blocked the path forward. They seemed to be guarding the street leading to a large skirmish between two groups. They spotted his arrival and moved to block him immediately, snickering with the anticipation of a fight.

"Look, brah, you ain't passing us!" the first thug spat, stepping in his path. Victor never slowed for an instant, his eyes narrowing. The wizard's arms began swirling with tendrils of black smoke that curled and twisted around his form, appearing blacker than the night itself, if that was even possible. His eyes soon took on the same color, smoke leaking from his corneas and dissipating into the air.

"Hey, didn't you hear?" The second thug growled, drawing a magic rifle from its place on his back. He pointed it at Victor, but the wizard wasn't there anymore. Victor's form dissipated into tendrils of smoke that moved faster than their eyes could follow.

"Yeah, I heard you," Victor assured them, his figure coalescing a centimeter behind the second thug, whose eyes widened with shock.

"Wha? How didya…?" the thug stammered, but then Victor attacked. Placing his left hand upon his clenched right fist, he slammed his smoke covered elbow into the thug's back. There was an audible crack as the man's spine fragmented on impact, and he was sent tumbling end over end down the street. Additional cracks could be heard as more bones fractured and broke due to the sheer momentum and force behind the one attack. The man was clearly dead, a fact that was emphasized when his head impacted the side of a warehouse and broke open.

The other two were luckier, but not by much. The second their comrade flew across the street, weapons were drawn. However, Victor was faster. With a swift roundhouse, his smoke covered leg slammed into the side of the thug on his right. The thug flew across the street and hit the wall, his pelvis breaking from impact and his ribs breaking from the collision with the wall.

The last thug had one second to try to comprehend why Victor's attacks held so much force behind them before the rogue wizard had wrenched him clear off of the ground with his hands and threw him into his partner, knocking them both out cold.

Victor strode past the downed thugs and walked towards the skirmish that was taking place. There seemed to be two mercenary groups involved here. The target of both groups seemed to be a warehouse at the far end of the street. One group, whose members wore black vests with white markings, was fighting to defend it while the red clad members of the other group were trying to push through. Their motivations didn't concern Victor, who planned to blow right through them.

Black smoke erupted from his body, shrouding his form in darkness. His eyes gleamed red through the smoke, orienting on the skirmish before him. The surface of the street ruptured as the wizard planted his foot and propelled himself forward. Using the smoke to somehow propel himself forward, the wizard zoomed right through the center of the skirmish.

Anyone unlucky enough to be hit head on by his charge was blown into bloody bits by his magic, while those who were merely grazed were cut and thrown aside like ragdolls, effectively ending the skirmish in its tracks.

"M…monster…" a red clad thug croaked from the ground, blood pooling from a gash in his side. Victor slammed into the ground in front of the contested warehouse, shattering the stone and creating a small crater. The taciturn wizard turned his head slightly and glared into the eyes of the thug who had spoken. The man quailed slightly, but refused to look away.

"You think the Crimson Sashes will let you get away with this?" the thug demanded, trying to rise. Victor turned fully around, his hands rising.

"Oh, I hope they don't," Victor expressed, a wolfish grin crossing his usually emotionless face. It was an expression reserved for when he was fighting, a situation that he truly enjoyed. The thug's eyes widened as Victor's hands curled into makeshift tubes. The wizard's cheeks puffed out as he sucked in air and prepared one of his mightiest attacks.

"Yami no Hoko!" Victor roared, and then a condensed stream of darkness emanated from his mouth. The powerful magic flew through his tube-like hands and spread out to encompass a wide area. When it collided with the thug, all that could be heard was a loud scream, and then the smoky darkness annihilated everything in the area affected by the magic.

Victor wiped his mouth, satisfied. When the smoke cleared, there was nothing left of the skirmishing thugs except for a large bloodstain. Not surprisingly, his attack had left damage on the surrounding warehouses, but it wasn't really enough to worry about.

As Victor resumed his walk towards Donnel's warehouse, he reflected on his previous action. Perhaps using his dragonslayer magic was a bit unnecessary, as it left a small dent on his magic power, but there was nothing more satisfying than seeing darkness completely disintegrate anything that stood in his way. Not to mention it was nighttime. Victor again opened his mouth to absorb more of the latent darkness in the air, replenishing his magic power and energy.

Now, there was nothing left to do except find Donnel's warehouse.

* * *

Darkness permeated the interior of the warehouse, lit only by the dim lights of candles and primitive oil lamps. It was enough, however, to shed light on the activities of the motley assortment of men scattered through out the warehouse's first level.

A man, dressed in white robes, who was poring over a small crystal ball. A group of unwashed men clustered around a small table, which was covered with a mixture of bent cards and grimy poker chips. Every so often a snicker would be heard, followed by angry retorts and arguments. That in turn would lead to another man, who was sitting at a ramshackle wooden desk, to turn around and yell at them to pipe down. It was the usual cycle for these men.

On the wall was a shoddy bulletin board covered in a small amount of papers, upon which were listed various jobs. None of these jobs were legitimate, often asking for thieves or assassins in exchange for a miniscule amount of money. Clustering beside this bulletin board was one or two filthy men equipped with various magical weapons.

This was the headquarters of the dark guild, the Wretched Sinners.

"Get another straight flush, I dare you!" screamed a card player at the table. This was followed by many more enraged agreements from the other players.

"Yeah, any more and we'll know you've been cheating!"

"Cheating bastard, this is our livelihood we're gambling with!"

"What can I say? I'm a lucky guy!"

"Bullshit!"

"For the love of God, pipe the fuck down!" the man at the desk roared over at them. "God forbid a guy write a letter in peace!"

He didn't get the response he wanted. Unlike the last few times he had done this, a man at the card table stood up and faced the man at the desk.

"Kaar, now you're being loud. Ain't that a bit hippotical?" the man shot back. Kaar's expression turned furious and he stood up from the desk.

"Dane, The word is hypocritical, you illiterate bastard! Besides, no matter how loud I am, it doesn't change the fact that I can't focus on my letter when you're ranting about straight flushes and shit!" he corrected. Dane, who was indeed illiterate, turned an angry red and stepped threateningly towards Kaar.

"You wanna go, bud? You've never been able to take me on," he boasted, his hands curling into fists. Kaar instantly responded by shooting an invisible concussive blast, which impacted directly with Dane's chest. He was sent sprawling backwards, colliding with the card table and shattering it. This enraged the rest of the card players, who stood up and began hurling indignant comments at Kaar.

"That's cheating, you asshole! We don't use magic in our fights!" the man yelled furiously, extricating himself from the wreckage of the table. In response to Kaar's concussive magic, Dane pulled out a deck of cards and drew one, which began to glow. "Ah, luck at last! Three of diamonds!"

Kaar's eyes widened as the man held his card towards him. The three diamonds on the card lifted off of the laminated paper and streaked towards him at a high speed.

"That's enough you two," an authoritative voice called down from the second floor. A thin beam of light streaked down and knocked the three diamonds out of the air. Kaar and Dane looked up to see the guild master hopping down from the upper floor. His light magic swirled around his hands, lighting up the area around him. A confident smirk was plastered over his boyish face.

"Master Donnel, sir." Kaar spoke respectively. Dane just groaned and threw his hands up in the air.

"I'm just gonna go do a job now," the man declared rather rudely. Donnel watched in amusement as the overzealous guild member walked over to the request board and began poring over the jobs listed there.

"Try not to misread the town name again," Donnel jeered at the departing guild member, who flicked him off in response. Donnel just chuckled and turned back to the other guild members.

"Huh…looks like someone is raising hell with the mercenaries tonight," the man at the crystal ball commented. Donnel glanced curiously over to the man.

"Really? Interesting. Maybe something will actually happen around here for once," Donnel commented nonchalantly. However, his demeanor changed when the gazing man's eyes suddenly went as wide as dinner plates.

"What is it?" the master questioned worriedly. The seer shook his head and rubbed his eyes, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"He's completely steamrolled the guys at the skirmish taking place tonight!" he announced. That gained some interest from the people listening in.

"So? They don't even use magic," Kaar spoke up. This did not allay the seer's fears though.

"He's…he's coming this way," he warned everyone. Weapons were drawn and magic was readied at this news. The seer's gaze suddenly jerked over to where Dane was. The illiterate man had just grabbed the job he wanted, earning annoyed comments from other wizards who had wanted the same job, and now he was heading for the door.

"DANE! MOVE!" the seer screamed as loud as he could. Dane was only able to glance over his shoulder before the door to the warehouse broke clear off its hinges and slammed into the hapless man, sending him and the door flying backwards, where it collided with the far wall.

* * *

Victor stood in the doorway, shadowy smoke wreathing around his entire form and obscuring his features. His eyes glanced around the room, looking for anyone who matched the description of Donnel. However, he was only given a moment before the men in the room began launching all kinds of attacks at him. At first he planned on ignoring them, but then he noticed magical attacks being sent at him.

He saw a wrinkle in the air, like an invisible force was heading his way. He instantly leapt forward, rolling on the ground to avoid the potent magical blast. He targeted the man who had fired it and retaliated, his right fist thrusting forward to launch a blast of darkness forth. Kaar was hit directly in the chest by the blast, knocking him senseless and sending him into the wall. It was lucky that he was a wizard, else the blast would have gone directly through him.

"Who the hell are you!" screamed a man near the request board. With the signature flash of a requip, a two handed sword appeared in his hands. He swung forcefully in a horizontal arc, attempting to slice Victor in half.

The dragonslayer ducked underneath the slash and aimed an uppercut with his smoke covered fist. He felt his fist come into contact with the soft flesh of the man's gut, tearing it and causing the man to drop his sword and yell out in pain. Victor grabbed the two handed sword with his left hand and used it to block a blast from a magical pistol fired by a man near the card table.

Victor blocked two more blasts and then changed hands, grabbing the sword with his right. Then, he hurled it clear across the room, where it ran straight through the pistol-wielding wizard. Blood dribbled out of the man's mouth before he collapsed to the ground.

"Master Donnel! He's slaughtering us all!" a man cried, shooting wildly at Victor with both of his magical pistols. A blast impacted with the dragonslayer's left shoulder, causing him to hiss in annoyance. His sheer magical power prevented him from taking too much damage, but it definitely would leave a bad bruise later.

The one near the back of the room who reacted to the previous man's call must have been Donnel. However, his appearance didn't match Abigail's description at all. For one, he wasn't wearing a cape. He also wasn't wearing a belt or any lacrima.

"You're not Donnel!" Victor asserted as he reached the dual pistol wizard. With two swift punches, the man was out cold and sprawled across the wreckage of a table.

Donnel blinked in surprise, and then in a comical manner, he checked himself. When Victor neared him, Donnel summoned a ribbon of light and sent it flying at the dragonslayer.

Victor was hit in the chest, sending him reeling backwards. He didn't lose his footing, however. The wizard checked his chest to see that there was a bleeding gash there, but it wasn't too deep. This man had some good magic.

"Of course I am! I am Donnel, the master of the Wretched Sinners. Now who the hell are you?" the master demanded, the ribbon of light swirling around his arm. Victor just gave him a disbelieving look, while at the same time blasting another wizard who thought he was being sneaky with a powerful shadowy blast.

"Are you fucking kidding? You go into the place I frequent most, ask questions like that, and don't expect me to come after you?" Victor shot back at him incredulously. However, the completely clueless expression exhibited from Donnel was not what he was expecting. Victor was good at telling when people were faking, and this man wasn't. However, the address from Abigail had clearly led him here.

"I don't know what you are talking about, but you have come into my guild and attacked my comrades. You will not leave here alive!" Donnel roared. He again sent the light ribbon at Victor, but this time the dragonslayer was ready.

Victor leapt back and avoided the ribbon, but it came at him again. With his darkness-covered fist, Victor slammed his fist into it, disintegrating it.

"You may have destroyed one, but don't get cocky!" Donnel warned, though he was clearly furious at losing his light ribbon. More light ribbons appeared in the air above Donnel. Before he could launch them at Victor, the dragonslayer charged forward and thrust his fist towards the master.

The ribbons whipped towards Victor like snakes, cutting and biting into his skin, even as one blocked his punch. He eventually had to retreat in order to avoid being shredded, though he did it with a lot of cursing. Donnel laughed.

"You see, your darkness has one fatal weakness!" the guild master declared confidently. Victor scoffed and straightened up, ignoring the pain from the many cuts on his skin.

"What, pray tell, would that be?" he asked anyway, just to humor the clearly delusional man. Donnel responded by intertwining the ribbons in midair to form a tornado of light.

"All darkness peels way before the power of light!" the master roared, and then he sent the tornado of light hurtling towards the shadow dragon slayer. Victor's eyes widened for a second before narrowing in concentration. He was feeling intense anger. Anger that Donnel was hindering him. Anger that he dared to assume that darkness was weaker than light. Anger at the misconception that he dared to voice to him.

A vortex of swirling shadow erupted around his body, spiraling so high that it burst through the ceiling of the warehouse. The tornado of light impacted with his body, but it was extinguished by the sheer power of the darkness surrounding him. When Victor opened his eyes to glare at Donnel, his corneas had turned black to match his pupils. Donnel reclined in shock and fear at the monster before him. It was almost as if he could see the shadowy form of a dragon behind the rogue wizard, but that didn't make any sense.

"You're wrong, Donnel," Victor corrected him in a low voice. Then, the dragonslayer propelled himself off the ground and through the air towards the guild master, who backed away towards the wall.

"All light is swallowed by the eternal darkness! YAMI NO…." Victor roared, approaching Donnel at a high speed. A curtain of shadow peeled away before him, revealing his fist, which was enveloped in a rotating aura of black smoke, streaking towards him. "TEKKEN!"

When Donnel felt the fist collide with his cheek, teeth shattered and his jaw broke. He was sent clear through the back wall of the warehouse and into the adjacent one, impacting with a support structure. The ceiling of the adjacent warehouse collapsed in on him, burying the master in rusted sheet metal.

The dragonslayer reclined against the wall in satisfaction. It had been a good fight, and as he gazed around at the unconscious or dead members of whatever guild had been here, he began wondering where he would get his next fight.

That was the worst part about fighting. When it was over, all he had to look forward to was another boring month or so at the bar, waiting for Hester to find him another job to do. It wasn't a bad life, but there was much to be desired. He wanted to be able to fight whenever he felt like it, and once a month just wasn't enough.

That was when a man walked through the doorway of the warehouse and began glancing around at all of the still forms of the guild members. Victor recognized him instantly.

It was just like Abigail had described. He was wearing two belts covered with lacrima on his pelvis, positioned in such a way that the two belts crossed in an X-fashion over his front and back. He also wore a belt that ran over his right shoulder, covering his armored chest. In fact, he was wearing metal greaves as well, complete with two steel boots. Again, as described, he wore a black cape that was attacked to the top of his breastplate and flowed down to the ground.

Unlike Victor, he had a full head of tidy black hair. None of the strands were long enough to fall below his ears, but it was arranged in such a way that it implied a wealthy lifestyle. His ice blue eyes roamed across the floor, looking for something in particular that he just wasn't finding.

Smoke began swirling around Victor' arms again. This was his true target, the one who had been asking about him.

"You're the real Donnel. You've got some nerve, showing up now," Victor accused sternly, standing up straight again and approaching the man. The man turned and gazed at Victor as if seeing him for the first time. However, before he could say anything in response, Victor was already lunging at him, his fist outstretched.

The man was fast, instantly detaching a lacrima from one of his belts and holding it before him.

"Lacrima Magic: Illusory Wall," the man spoke calmly. The lacrima glowed, and before Victor knew what was happening, his fist collided with a solid wall made out of silvery light. Instead of shattering, the wall absorbed his magic and repulsed him backwards. Victor retained his footing, but he had gained some respect for the man standing before him. He should have known that the real Donnel wouldn't be some small fry.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. You and I have much to discuss," he warned, replacing the lacrima on his belt, which caused the wall to disappear. Instead, he detached another, which began to glow.

"Lacrima Magic: Civil Discourse," the man iterated. Suddenly, a table and two chairs materialized from the light shed from the lacrima. Placing the glowing lacrima on a stand that came with the table, the man sat in one of the chairs, gesturing for Victor to do the same.

The dragonslayer did so warily, glaring suspiciously at the man who he knew was Donnel. The smoke around his fists never dissipated, as Victor never let his guard down.

"What the fuck do you want with me, Donnel?" he snapped impatiently. The man looked surprised, but then he laughed heartily, the sound only irritating the dragonslayer further.

"Me? Donnel? No, Victor. I assure you that Donnel is still where you left him," the man replied humorously. Victor looked perturbed.

"Then why did you introduce yourself as Donnel to the bar patrons? For I know it was you who was asking about me," he shot back. If the man was shocked, he didn't show it.

"Very perceptive of you. Yes, I wished to learn whether you possessed the qualities I'm looking for. By passing this little test of mine, you have shown that you indeed possess these qualities," he explained. Victor blinked, utterly confused. His evident confusion caused the man to chuckle slightly.

"Test? Qualities? What?" the dragon slayer repeated dumbly, completely lost as to what the man meant.

"Allow me to explain. My codename is Orb, S-Rank wizard of the dark guild, Full Moon. We lost one of our members during the conflict between Oracion Seis and the Guild Alliance, when he was mistaken for Fairy Tail and defeated by the aforementioned dark guild," the wizard began. Victor listened to what he was saying, recognizing several names. Even as far away as Cardinal City, he had heard of Oracion Seis and Fairy Tail. Despite their strength, one third of the Baram Alliance had fallen to the might of Fairy Tail, a guild whose business Victor knew to stay out of.

"Well, 'Orb,' I still don't see how this pertains to me," Victor interrupted. Orb held up a hand, motioning for silence and patience from the dragonslayer. He acquiesced with bad grace, muttering indistinctly.

"Well, if you'll allow me to cut to the chase, we've been searching for new recruits. However, we will not take on just anybody, because Full Moon plans to replace Oracion Seis alongside Grimoire Heart and Tartarus. Hence the reason for the test I gave you. Donnel was running a guild that was a threat to our operations in this city, so I led you to him, knowing that if you were strong enough, you could take him out," Orb continued. Victor glanced at the man with shock. He had been approached by legal guilds before, but this was the first time a dark guild had approached him.

"Wait, you want to recruit me?" Victor asked incredulously. When he saw Orb nod, he began to laugh. The thought of anyone wanting his destructive nature and his inability to respect authority was simply ludicrous. "Wait you're serious? Sorry, I don't do guilds. Ask someone else."

"I see," Orb spoke softly. He didn't seem disappointed. Actually, Victor hadn't assumed that he would just give up after one refusal. "And if I told you that not only can you fight whenever you want, but you also get paid for it?"

"Bullshit. That's what Blue Pegasus said, yet all the jobs I got were 'escort this generic damsel,' or 'rescue this kitten,' and similar slop," Victor shot back, unmoving. Orb sighed, shaking his head.

"Don't insult us, Victor. We are a _dark guild_. We are nothing like the disgrace that calls itself Blue Pegasus. The strength they possess is real, but they are bogged down by procedure and a false sense of justice," Orb corrected the dragonslayer, who despite his suspicions, was beginning to consider joining. If anything, Orb was persuasive.

"Our Guild Master, Xanatos, filters what jobs we display on the request board. We only take combat related jobs dedicated to the betterment of mankind. Would you like to see an example?" the wizard continued. Victor sighed. Orb's cultured words were beginning to get on his nerves, but he decided that he might as well look.

"Sure, whatever," the dragonslayer replied. Orb detached another lacrima from one of his belts and released the contents onto the table. A job request floated to the tabletop, where Victor grabbed it and began scanning the requirements.

"_Discover the source of the mutagen that is turning our people to deranged animals, lest it swallow the entire village! Mutants that result from this change are shown to be very strong, thus only an S-Rank wizard will satisfy us. Reward of 8,000,000 J upon confirmation of success," _the paper read. Victor grew interested in the job, and in the dark guild Orb was trying to get him to join as well. If all the jobs in the guild were like this, then maybe it would be worth seeing after all. However, he had one last question before he accepted anything.

"I like it. However, I want to know how strong your guild is. I don't want to join some guild filled with weaklings," Victor asked bluntly. Orb smiled knowingly, as if he had expected a question like this. The S-Rank wizard rose from the table and motioned for Victor to follow.

Perplexed, the dragonslayer rose from his seat. Orb recalled the table and chairs into the source lacrima before replacing it on his belt. Then the wizard led him outside and pointed to a warehouse in the distance.

"Yeah, I see it. What about it?" Victor demanded impatiently. Orb didn't reply at first, instead detaching another lacrima from the belt on his chest. He pointed it towards the warehouse and activated it, causing the blue sphere to glow.

"Lacrima Magic: Plasma Destruction," Orb declared. Then, in the blink of an eye, a massive beam of yellowish orange light streamed out of the lacrima with a hissing sound. Then, it impacted with the warehouse and went right through it, disintegrating everything it came into contact with. Then it went on to annihilate the next two warehouses behind it, as well as a group of thugs that had been robbing the last one. Then it disappeared. The whole attack had occurred in less than a second.

"The fuck…did I just see?" Victor said in awe, looking at the steaming path of destruction left by the attack. Orb replaced the lacrima on his belt calmly.

"I am the weakest S-Rank wizard in Full Moon. Fear and Thorn are stronger than me by far, and even they are nothing compared to Genesis and the master himself. Are you satisfied?" Orb related smugly to the dragonslayer, who had gained a new respect for the guild.

"Yeah, I think I am. I'll give this guild of yours a shot. If I don't like it, I'm leaving," Victor confirmed. Orb grinned broadly and clapped Victor on the back in a friendly manner. The dragonslayer gritted his teeth and bore it, though he despised when other people touched him.

"That settles it! If you'll follow me, I'll take you to our Guild," Orb offered, but then seemed to remember something. "Unless you have any goodbyes to say."

Victor gave Orb his famous "are you fucking kidding me," look, earning a hearty laugh from the wizard.

"I'll take that as a no," Orb responded. Victor had considered telling Hester that he was going, but decided better of it. It was always easier to just use a scrying lacrima to do the same thing.

Orb grabbed another lacrima from his chest belt and released the contents, which in this case happened to be a SE powered four-wheeler, colored black and adorned with the image of a blood red moon. Victor blinked. Because a four-wheeler is something you can just pull out of a hat…er…lacrima.

Victor climbed into the cabin, while Orb attached the SE plug to his wrist and sat on top, where the driver usually sat. The interior was nice, with bright red leather seats providing decent comfort. At least it was something to stretch out on.

"Hang tight, we'll be there by dawn," Orb informed Victor. The dragonslayer said nothing, as he had a lot of his mind worth thinking about.

After all, he had just joined a guild. Hell had just frozen over.

* * *

And there it is. I'm sorry it took as long as it did. I hit writers block AGAIN, but this time I got by with a little help from my friends~ lol references. But seriously, I finally got by. This is my other OC, Victor. I hope you like him. Since I will be alternating between POVS, you'll find out more about how Kerrich is adjusting to his new life next chapter, and then after that you'll finally meet the members of Full Moon.

Oh, and I had Orb mention Fairy Tail to assure you readers that I haven't, in fact, forgotten them, and that we will be seeing them fairly soon, if not next chapter. So pretty much, Victor knows not to fuck with Fairy Tail, though that doesn't mean they won't cross paths in the future.

Oh, and please leave a review if you don't mind. It was hard work cranking this monster out.

Keelah Se'lai,

Terran34.


	3. Enter Fairy Tail

Okay, summer vacation is over, which means I now have the time to write again. Well, to be honest, I had a ton of time to write during the vacation, I just didn't. There was Mass Effect 3 to be played. You know how it goes.

Anyhow, we are going back to everyone's favorite clueless protagonist, Kerrich. The poor guy has no idea what he's getting into.

Disclaimer: I must remind you that any thing that Kerrich says that may be considered offensive is in fact the opinion of the character and not my own.

* * *

Okay, the view from the cliff top lied to me. It looked like the city was big. Now that I'm seeing it up close and personal, I have to revise that appraisal. This place is fucking huge.

So yeah, after Gajeel left me behind, pretty much resumed what I was doing before getting my ass beat. The only problem was, my ribs were aching the whole time. I really think that Lance guy broke a rib or two. Let me tell you, that made traveling here a bitch.

By the time I reached the city, there was no sign of Gajeel. Great. So I know almost nothing about the guy that saved me. I guess I can track him down later, after I find out more about this world I'm going to be living in until I can find a way back.

I walk the last stretch of road to the open city gate. There was a lot of traffic through said gate, which made sense, considering it was a major city, so I'm guessing that trade played a huge part in its economy. Dear God, my economics class has stolen part of my soul. I can't even look at a freaking gate without analyzing it. Go figure.

My eyes flick to the two men dressed in strangely colored clothing standing on either side of the gate entrance. They must be city guards and…is that chainmail they're wearing?

So they've got guns in this time frame, yet they still wear chainmail. I guess that could help with the swords, but a bullet would just slice right through it. Also, I'm pretty damn sure chainmail was rendered obsolete by the introduction of plate mail. Nothing about this world makes sense.

Whatever. I resume my walk forward, threading my way through the traffic and slipping through the gateway. The guards didn't try to stop me, so I'm guessing they don't get much trouble around here. Pfft, my broken ribs beg to differ.

Speaking of which, pain lances through my chest and I wince. My instincts tell me to hold the wound, but I know better. I need to find a hospital or something. Maybe they have healing magic. I grin, thinking about how convenient that would be.

It didn't take long before the stares start converging on me. Although it irritates the hell out of me, it is understandable. A shirtless guy wearing damp pants and sporting a giant ass bruise on his ribs isn't something you see every day.

With difficulty, I ignore the nosy stares and begin casting my gaze around. It's a pretty busy city, to be sure. The atmosphere was nothing like back at Kennesaw, where people walk alone or with a few others, ignoring practically everyone but their close friends. Here, I could see nearly everyone calling out or speaking to one another, smiles being a common sight. It's enough to make a smile cross my own face, but I'm sure it's more like a grimace, considering the amount of pain I'm in.

In fact, my current state must have attracted someone's attention, since there was now a middle-aged man walking towards me purposefully, his eyes resting on the bruise on my side.

"Excuse me sir, but you seem to be in need of medical attention," the man calls out to me. I glance up at him. I really want to say something sarcastic to him, but I'm only that much of an ass on the inside. The guy is taking time out of his life to help me, so the least I can do is express some gratitude.

"No kidding. I feel like death," I replied dryly. The broken ribs are the most prominent of my injuries, but I'm also covered in scratches and abrasions. I'm sure that if I don't get them treated, they might get infected. That's never good.

"You need to get those seen to as soon as possible, lest they get infected. Do you know where the nearest hospital is?" the man continues politely. I can't help but feel put out that I didn't even get a chuckle out of the guy. Well, at least _I _think I'm witty. In response to his question, I nod breathlessly, trying to breathe without hurting myself.

"No, I'm new in town. Can you direct me?" I ask. I'm looking forward to seeing how they treat me in this strange world. The man turns around and points with his right hand towards a street that turns right off of the main road.

"The nearest hospital is up ahead and to the right," he informs me. I nod in thanks because I just can't seem to form words. I take one tentative step forward.

When my foot pounds into the ground, a massive wave of pain washes through my torso. I can't help but grunt. Dear God, it feels like I've just been shot. Damn that Lance guy!

My legs wobble and I nearly fall down, but I'm able to steady myself on the wall of a nearby building. The man watches me attempt to walk with worry in his eyes. When I take another step, the pain returned and I grunt again. This time, my legs give out and I begin to fall.

"Oh shi…!" I start to curse, but someone catches me by the arm to prevent me from hitting the ground. I'm thankful to my rescuer, but it feels like my arm is about to be pulled out of its socket.

"Guess I'd better help you there," the man's voice spoke from beside my head. I say nothing, instead using my energy to gain purchase on the ground once again.

Once I was ready, the man, who I'm really getting sick of referring to him as such, drapes my arm around his neck and slowly begins to walk towards the street he indicated.

"You know, you don't really have to worry about me," I grit out between my clenched teeth. With every step he helps me take, I can feel my busted ribs throbbing. The man clicked his tongue in response.

"Things haven't gotten so bad that we'll just let a half dead kid crawl in the streets," he replies jokingly. I instantly took offense. Who was he calling kid?

"I am not half…ow! Fuck!" I begin to respond, but by raising my voice, my lungs press against my ribs and cause me to cut off mid sentence with the pain.

"Your use of expletives implies otherwise," the man observed wryly, chuckling. I just grumble incoherently, half from indignity and half from the fact that he was right. If it weren't for Gajeel, odds are I'd be dead now.

With his help, I walk through the street until I reach the right turn. We turn that way and head towards the shining hospital sign. Hang on it's shining. I thought we are in the 1800s. They aren't supposed to have neon, so what the hell?

"Is that…a neon sign?" I ask weakly, trying not to aggravate my ribs anymore. The man looks down at me, raising an eyebrow at the question. I guess that answers that.

"What? You mean that sign? That's just one of the magics used by the hospital's owner. He can write in the air. Nifty, right?" the man responds. I let out a sigh at his words. So Lance wasn't crazy. It appears that magic does exist in this world or whatever. How the hell did I get here anyway? Oh right. A fucking hole in the sky.

"Heh. Yeah. Nifty." I reply. If the man was disturbed by my lack of enthusiasm, he wasn't showing it. Grasping my arm tighter, he increases his pace, thus forcing me to increase mine. This results in several more choice words from me.

There were two women dressed in white clothing standing outside of the hospital entrance. Of course. No matter what world I'm in, the hospitals are always a shade of sterile freaking white. Why can't it be something soothing? Like sea colored. That would be epic. Look up when you're getting a shot and instead of white, you see a whale. Then you would get less people passing out because they can't stand needles. Or is that just me?

The second the women see me, the first one nods to the other, who runs inside. Then the first one hurries over to us, allowing me to get a better look at her. Oh praise the Lord. She isn't middle aged. No, she's more like my age, or maybe a little bit older. To say the least, she was easy on the eyes.

"Oh dear, is he all right?" the woman asks with a worried tone. I suddenly start getting a little light headed for some reason. Then I remember that my ribs weren't my only injury. I'm still oozing blood from all kinds of abrasions and cuts from the fight.

"Broken ribs, along with some auxiliary wounds. Can you help him?" the man answers for me, while I struggle to remain conscious. I have no idea why I'm feeling sleepy all of a sudden, but it can't be good. Maybe I lost a little too much blood. I look at the white hospital again.

"Why aren't there any whales?" I say for some reason, my eyes drooping. The man and the woman both give me a WTF face, making me realize what I just said. "I mean…uh…"

"Maybe a head wound too." The man added, a smile playing at his lips. Just then, the second woman rushes out of the hospital with a stretcher, accompanied by a few other men, who look like doctors.

Then my eyes start closing, and it's harder to understand what's going on. I can feel myself being placed on the aforementioned stretcher and wheeled away into the hospital. I don't know why they need a stretcher if they have magic. Why not just use your mumbo jumbo and whatnot and send my on my way? I want to find this Gajeel guy.

My eyes close, and I can vaguely feel myself being pushed into a small room before I lose consciousness.

* * *

_I'm back at Kennesaw, standing next to my chemistry professor as he takes roll for the day. I smile, heft my bag, and walk over to my seat. I sit down, and then realize that Priscilla isn't sitting next to me like she usually does. She must still be at the gym. She does tend to lose track of time._

_ I give a friendly nod to my friend Natalie, who sits on my other side. However, to my surprise, she completely ignores me. What the fuck? I'm not as close to her as I am to Priscilla, but we still hung out a little bit. So why the hell is she treating me so coldly._

_ "Nat, did I do something wrong?" I say to her, but oddly, my voice came out very faint. I could barely hear myself talk. Natalie said nothing, instead staring at the professor with a worried look on her face._

_ "NAT!" I yell at her, but my voice remains at the same volume, if not even fainter. "WHAT THE HELL?"_

_ "Huh. This is odd. Both Kerrich and Priscilla absent on the same day?" The professor thinks aloud, gazing at me and the empty seat next to me. Hang on, I'm absent? But I'm right here!_

_ "Sir, I'm right here," I call out to him, but he either doesn't hear me, or he's ignoring me too._

_ "They're probably making out in a corner somewhere," a particularly bold girl near the back of the room calls, causing a few other people to snicker. I feel myself turning red. I can't deny that I've thought about kissing Priscilla, but I was just too damn scared to do it. She'd throw me into a wall or something like that._

_ "Wait, you haven't heard?" a guy up near the professor spoke up timidly. Attention turns to him instantly. This is a very close class, so everyone always stops to listen to one another._

_ "Priscilla was…killed in a car crash near the exit to campus." _

_ The class plunges into a stunned silence. It is so quiet, I can even hear the scratching of pencils from the next room over. I then remember everything from the past day, including my unfortunate fall into the sky. I drop my bag to the ground, which makes no sound, oddly enough. Then the other members of the class began shooting rapid fire questions at the unfortunate man, who quails under the pressure._

_ "No fucking way! Priscilla?"_

_ "Are you joking? Please tell me you are joking."_

_ "What? How?"_

_ "She…she'd never die from something like that!" _

_ The professor brings order to the class by raising his arm. The class quiets down, but the atmosphere has visibly changed. Priscilla was well liked by her classmates, and her loss would be felt._

_ "When did this happen, Darren?" the professor asks calmly, though he is as shocked as the rest of us._

_ "Just last afternoon, during the freak storm. I don't know the details, but I did recognize her car," Darren relates. I slam my fist into the desk as I hear him talk. Though, like before, my action made no sound._

_ "…and Kerrich?" Natalie spoke up from next to me. Darren just shrugs in response. _

_ "Good question. Last I saw of him, he was going to the gym with Priscilla." He answers the worried girl, who glances at me. Her eyes lock with mine, and I'm sure she can see me. I instantly start calling her name, while waving my hand in her face. However, my hopes are crushed when she turns the other way without even flinching._

_ "He was supposed to get on Skype with me so I could help him with his English paper, but never showed up. I gave him a call, but I didn't get an answer." Another classmate, whose name is James, adds._

_ "Do you think he was in the car with Priscilla?" asks Jess, another member of the class. A collective shudder passes through the class._

_ "Let's just hope not," the professor replies grimly. It begins to dawn on me what's going on. I stand up in my seat._

_ "Are you people fucking blind? I'm standing right here!" I roar. When I get no response, I leap over the desk and land on the ground, bending my knees upon impact. No one seems to care that I'm running amok in the front of the room._

_ "Why won't you people acknowledge me!" I attempt to pick up a chair nearby, only to find my hand passing through it. "The fuck?"_

_ I can't seem to affect the chair no matter how many times I try. Frustrated an confused, I storm over to my seat and look for my bag, only to find it gone._

_ I begin to lose my temper. I try to force my way past Natalie, but I trip over something and end up falling into the desk. Instead of feeling pain and an impact, I pass right through it and hit the ground._

* * *

_ When the professor begins to read off of the powerpoint to the class like he usually does, I just scream in frustration._

My eyes shoot open, and I can see nothing but a white ceiling above me. I try to move, but my ribs twinge slightly and I instantly abandon that idea. That reminded me. That Lance guy used me as a dishrag.

I raise my head slightly and look down at myself. My cuts and bruises seem to be mostly gone or scabbed over, which was really fast considering their severity. Then again, for all I knew, a wizard did it. Ha. If things keep going as they are, I'll actually get to say that and have it not be complete bullshit. Hey Kerrich how did you write ten pages in half and hour? A fucking wizard did it.

As for my ribs, someone wrapped them tightly in bandages while I was sleeping. Now, it doesn't hurt as much when I try to move, but I don't want to take any chances with my health.

Speaking of being asleep, I had one hell of a messed up dream. I can remember every bit of it with near perfect detail, but that always happens to me. Some people complain about not remembering their dreams, but mine are like fucking photographic. Heh. Too bad the rest of my memories aren't like that. I'd have been in Harvard and rich instead of stuck in the middle of a foreign world.

But I'm sort of depressed now. I wonder what my other friends are feeling about my disappearance. That dream made me realize that I've forgotten about everyone back home. Now I really want to get back.

I look around and realize that I am alone in this room. I really want to get out of here now, so I should try getting someone's attention.

"Uh…someone!" I call awkwardly, not really knowing what to call the people who saved me. That did the trick apparently, because a pretty woman, maybe in her twenties, dressed in the typical white uniform came into the room.

"Oh good, you are awake. Sorry about the sleep spell, it's just something we do to prevent patients from hurting themselves further," the woman, who I'll call Nurse for now, says to me excitedly.

"That explains why I was passing out. I knew I hadn't lost that much blood." I commented, earning a confirmatory nod from Nurse. Sleep spells. Really? So I just had the magic equivalent of chloroform used on me. Not that I'm complaining. Nurse is attractive enough.

"Now, can you tell me who did this to you?" Nurse asks me, sitting down next to me on the bed. I shift uncomfortably, trying to hide my body's reaction to her proximity. Wow. Rather pathetic of me. How about I focus on the fact that I was nearly beaten to death yesterday? There we go.

"Yeah. They called themselves the Rusted Blades," I answer her. You know, Lance was strong, but he was lacking in brains. The name "Rusted Blades' doesn't really inspire fear in the average person. I mean, who would be scared of a rusted blade? What an idiot. However, Nurse obviously recognizes the name, judging by her shocked expression. She gives me this sympathetic look.

"I'm so sorry. They've been causing trouble on the outskirts of the city for quite a while now," she explains. I groan. My luck must be terrible if the first city I reach is one plagued by common…wait…magical bandits. That just sounds a little gay to me.

"Don't you have a military or something?" I demand of her. It's pretty sad that this city can't even defend itself from thugs.

"Well, we do, but they just aren't strong enough to handle wizards. That's why we've put out a request for guild wizards to take care of them for us," Nurse relates to me. Yeah, all that says to me is "wahh we're weak do our job for us!" Pathetic. There goes my respect for the military.

"Huh? Guild?" I prompt her, because I have no idea what she's talking about. Can't they at least call them mages? Mages just sounds cool, or even sorcerers would do. Wizard just reminds me of that guy from Zelda who zips around zapping you with magic. Wait, that's a Wizzrobe. But STILL!

She just gives me this incredulous look. That makes me realize that these guilds must be a common thing, if she's looking at me like that. Huh. I guess I'll just go with my, "I hit my head" story. Wow, it's kinda pathetic that I keep using the same story.

"Oh that's right. You had a head wound. I'm sorry," she exclaims. I check the back of my head and sure enough, there's a bandage there. I wonder when that happened? Well, at least that makes it easier to lie.

"Guilds are groups of wizards that live and work together to complete tasks given to them by the people. Do you remember now?" Nurse continues. If I was an anime character and could sweatdrop, I would be doing it right now. Guilds? Wizards? This is sounding less like real life and more like World of Warcraft. What next? Collect the seven Chaos Emeralds?

"Yeah, I remember! Wow, how could I forget that," I commented sarcastically, but she didn't catch it. Damn this world and its magic.

That's when I got an idea. She said that the city had asked for help taking care of those thugs, and had gotten a guild wizard to help. Perhaps that Gajeel is a member of a guild and that's why he was there to thrash those guys. I guess there's no harm in asking.

"Speaking of guilds, is there anyone in the city by the name of Gajeel?" The name I give instantly catches her attention. Her eyes go wide and a goofy smile crosses her face. What the…

"You know the Great Gajeel? He's just so awesome!" Nurse responds instantly, a light blush coloring her face. Seriously? Fangirl alert! Fangirl alert!

"Yeah, yeah. Where can I find him?" I interject before she can start ranting about how awesome he is. I know how fangirls are!

"I think he left for a job recently. Why?" she eyes me suspiciously. I raise an eyebrow at her tone. What the hell is that about? Is she one of those fangirls that even suspects men of trying to take the object of their affection? Bitch, I like girls.

"He's the one who saved me from the Rusted Blades. I want to thank him," I reply honestly. Man, it feels good to tell the truth for once. Well, it was sort of a half-truth. I did want to thank him for saving my life, but I also wanted to find out where he learned such crazy magic. If magic was learnable…then that would be a skill worth learning for when I went back to my world. That would be awesome. You wanna throw me, Priscilla? Telekinesis, bitch! Oh…wait. She's dead. Fuck my life.

"Oh. In that case, you could try looking for him at the Fairy Tale guild hall," she finally tells me. Okay, one thing after another. Fairy Tale? Seriously? What kind of name of a guild is that? Hooray, Fairy Tale is coming-wait the fuck? Not very awe inspiring.

"Is that that huge building in the far north…uh...south…uh whatever of town?" I ask suspiciously. If this guild place was important, then it only stood to reason that it would be in a particularly large building. The Nurse just nods.

"Then that's where I need to go," I tell her, and then I try to move. She sees what I'm doing and immediately hops off the bed. My ribs twinge, and the friction of slipping off the bed burns a little, but it's nothing serious. She grabs my arm to steady me as my feet touch the ground.

Nurse watches me warily, ready to catch me if I'm not able to stand. I place my weight on my feet and find that I'm ready to move. This world's medical prowess is damn good if my ribs are nearly healed in just one day.

"Do you need help getting there?" she inquires worriedly. I don't answer at first, and instead I try to take a step forward. Lifting my foot off the ground was easy enough, but as I moved forward, my ribs hurt a little. It wasn't too bad. I would need to take it easy for a few days I'm sure, but I could move for now.

"No, just give me directions and I'll be fine," I reassure. She didn't look convinced, but she did let go of my arm. She looks out the window and points, showing me the street below.

"You head back this way and turn right again. You keep heading that way until you see a bridge over the river on your left. You with me so far?" Nurse begins. I nod and then I crane my head to try and see where it is she's telling me to go.

"Then you circle around the cathedral and head across another bridge and Fairy Tale should be just ahead." God, it just kills me that someone as badass as Gajeel is in a guild called Fairy Tale. How does he stand it? But I guess I should just get over it and find the place. When I go to leave, I realize I'm still not wearing a shirt. I notice my shirt from yesterday freshly cleaned and dried hanging on the wall, so I don it. I thank the Nurse and slowly leave the room.

It's really hard to walk this slowly. But I'm trying to pace myself so my ribs don't hurt as much.

I look around, not knowing how the hell to get out of this hospital. Oh. There are handy little signs on the walls with arrows on them. That definitely helps. Especially for someone as clueless as me.

Soon, I'm standing back in the streets. Judging from the sun being on the opposite end of the sky than it was before, it must be early in the morning. I guess I was out for quite a while.

I'm grateful that I have a shirt now, because now I look less like a freak or a pervert. Thankfully, no one is staring at me anymore. Thank the lord for that. So, I head down the street and find myself back on the main road near the main gate. Foot traffic isn't that bad, but I'm sure it will get worse, being the beginning of the day and all. So while I still have time, I walk down the main street in the direction given to me by Nurse.

I see many more odd things on the way. I see more of those weird purple boar things that Lance killed. I guess those are the horses for this world? I think I like horses better. Please god, tell me that the military don't ride those things into battle. Help! An army of flamers is coming!

Then there's something else. Hairstyles. People wear them pretty much like they do in my world, but the colors, dear god the colors! Some girl walks by me with pink hair. Pink of all colors! Then a guy with blue hair moves by me as I stare dumbly. What the fuck? Is having epic hair dye the "in" thing in this world? What is this I don't even.

In fact, I'm going to find out. You just don't see all of these wild hair colors in my world, so I'm going to ask someone. I walk up to a girl who is standing a little ways up the street who has bright green hair.

"Excuse me, can I ask you a question?" I speak up confidently. She jumps slightly, startled. She looks to either side as if I'm talking to someone else. I tap my foot impatiently. When she realizes that I am talking to her, she gives a little giggle and looks at me expectantly.

"I find your hair color curious. Did you dye it?" The response I got was nothing like what I expected. Her expression turns furious and indignant, and she gives me this incredulous scoff.

"How dare you! I'll have you know this is my natural hair color!" she snaps at me. Before I can say anything, she turns her nose up and stalks away from me. I blink in utter confusion. What…just…happened?

Okay, so either she's a crazy bitch, or her hair color is natural. And if her hair color is natural, then that means that this world is much more fucked up than I thought. I bet this would give geneticists back home quite the headache. Hey guys, now you have every color of the fucking rainbow to think about when analyzing genes!

Aaaanyway…moving on. I walk away from that corner and continue down the street until the bridge comes into sight. It's made of stone, thankfully. I don't like wooden bridges. It arches pretty high over the river, which makes sense because I can see boats filled with crates and things passing underneath it.

I shrug and cross the bridge, the cathedral looming high above me. That place is fucking massive. Not just that, it's a fine piece of architecture. Looks gothic to me, but I could be wrong. I'm not majoring in architecture after all.

Once I reach the other side, a loud tolling sound echoes through the city. It's much louder for me, since I'm sure I'm standing right next to the source. This means the cathedral has a bell tower as well.

As I walk along the street, the cathedral bell tolls out ten more times. That's good. That tells me not only is it eleven in the morning, but it also lets me know that this world has the same system of time that mine does.

As I walk past the front of the cathedral on my way to the last bridge, I peek inside the doors. They're open, showing me a huge interior, but there's not that many people inside. I guess they're not holding a service or anything like that. I feel sort of grateful for that. It would be rather awkward to have a service in progress and walk past an open door. They'd all stare at me. Did I mention I hate it when people stare at me?

I shake my head at myself and continue on. The next bridge looms toward me. Something catches my eye as I walk towards the bridge, so I turn my head to look. There's this girl walking right on the edge of the street. It didn't have a guardrail, so if she tripped or something, she'd go right in the river.

I can't see her clearly enough, but I can tell she is blonde. She also looks around my age, or maybe a little younger. I can't see her well enough to tell whether or not she's attractive or not. Shame.

"That's dangerous, missy!" a man calls to her from a boat that's passing by. Good, someone with some sense. Though I suppose if she did fall, I could pull some Pirates of the Caribbean shit and jump in and save her. Yeah, because I obviously don't care what happens to my ribs.

"I'll be all right!" the girl calls back. I'm not convinced. I'm sure the boatman isn't either.

I decide I've lingered here enough. People-watching is fun, but it doesn't get me anywhere. Ignoring the balancing girl, I cross the last bridge. I only had to walk for a minute for the huge building, which I assume belongs to Fairy Tale, comes into view. In fact, the giant sign that says, "Fairy Tail", confirms that.

Wait a minute, Fairy "Tail?" It isn't spelled –le? Since when? Hang on, this makes no sense. Fairies don't have tails! Or do they? I guess it depends on what interpretation you are reading. Some authors do give them tails, others don't. But they aren't real, so how can anyone tell if fairies have tails? You know what? I'm over-thinking this. It's just a fucking name. But at least now it's less gay.

The building looks Japanese in terms of architecture. Or it could be Chinese. Am I racist for not being able to tell the two apart? Whatever. The doors are huge, which means it will probably let everyone inside know that I'm coming in, so they all will stare at me. Hm, how to sneak inside without drawing attention to myself?

While I was concocting some genius plan, I stood right at the entrance to the place, staring up at the Fairy Tail sign. I end up zoning out, so I don't even notice the person walking up from behind me.

"Um, excuse me…" comes this shy sounding voice from behind me. Since I was deep in thought, I completely didn't expect anyone to talk to me. Therefore, I'm pretty sure I jumped to the fucking moon. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

I turn around to see the same girl I had been watching earlier. The balancing girl. Only now I could get a closer look. She was more cute than she was hot, which didn't necessarily turn me off, but definitely made me want to know her first. Wow, that would be my first thought.

She's wearing this blue and white shirt along with a short blue skirt that reminds me somewhat of a sailor. That's when a humorous thought comes to my head. She has blonde hair, and looks like a sailor. ZOMG! It's Sailor Moon in disguise! Hyo hyo hyo! Wowww…I'm so lame.

"Don't worry about it. It's my fault for staring into space like that. Do you need me to move?" I reply politely. Don't worry, I'm only an ass in my head. The girl shakes her head.

"No, I was just curious. Why are you staring so hard at the Fairy Tail sign? Do you have business with us?" she answers. I sigh. I figured she would ask about that. God forbid a guy think about something without people nosing into…wait. Did she just say "us?"

"Wait, you're with Fairy Tail?" I exclaim. While this still wasn't what I was planning, befriending a member of the guild I'm trying to get into is better than just barging on in. The girl nods and holds up her hand, showing me a tattoo of the same symbol that's on the sign above me.

"Yeah! I'm Fairy Tail's Lucy! It's nice to meet you," the girl finishes her introduction with a pose and a wink. I just blink in response. She's awfully…flirty.

"Likewise. I'm Kerrich from…Kennesaw," I tell her. When she realizes that I'm not responding to her pose, she crosses her arms and pouts a little. I try my hardest not to laugh. This is a Fairy Tail wizard? Pathetic!

"Kennesaw? I've never heard of that. Is that a guild?" Lucy asks me curiously. I guess I'll tell the truth as much as I can without giving anything away.

"No it's a school out in the middle of nowhere. I'm done with it for now, so I decided to come to Magnolia." Lucy seems placated by this. Again, it's a half-truth, but it's the best I can do. How can I say that I was sucked into a hole in sky and brought to a world filled with purple boars and wizards?

"Oh ok. Then what brings you to Fairy Tail?" she says, finally asking a question I can't dodge. Well, might as well tell her.

"One of your members saved my life outside of the city, so I came here to thank him," I answer. I swear, it feels like I'm being interrogated. Who are you, what are you doing here, answer wrong and I will fucking mutilate you! Dear god, now I'm having a mental image of being strapped to a chair with this chick snapping questions at me…and yet I am surprisingly okay with that.

"How wonderful? Do you mind telling me who it was that saved you?" Lucy inquires. Again with the fucking questions! Well, I guess it's a little nice that somewhere cares enough to ask these sorts of questions. Unlike Priscilla. I'd complain that I nearly died someplace and she'd probably tell me that it sucks to be me.

"Yeah, some guy called Gajeel." Just by saying his name, Lucy's eyes widen ever so slightly. So I guess she definitely knows him.

"Wow, Gajeel saved you? I guess there's a first for everything," she comments, and then she laughs a little at her own joke. I also chuckle, since from what I've seen, Gajeel seems rather difficult to deal with. After all, he told me to shut up when I was trying to help him.

"Yeah. It was a totally one-sided fight too. I'm about to get hit by one hell of an attack, and then he just sort of prances on up, annihilates everything, and then leaves," I relate to her. Lucy can't help but laugh. I now have a mental image of Gajeel prancing. That's fucking hilarious.

"Sounds like Gajeel. Why don't you come on in? He got back just yesterday," she offers. I grin. Achievement unlocked! Gained access to the Fairy Tail guildhall.

"Might as well. Lead on," I answer, stepping aside so that she can take the lead. Lucy smiles widely and walks past me. She gently pushes one of the huge double doors open, revealing the interior of the guildhall.

* * *

Holy shit. This place is awesome. It's like a town square that's not a town square. There are these tables and benches everywhere completely occupied with a multitude of different people, who were laughing and drinking. At the back of the room was a bar, with a young woman standing behind it, serving drinks.

To my left and right are doors that lead to who knows where, with what looked like shops just nearby. Lastly, there was a bulletin board with the label "Request Board" on it, with a large tribal looking man standing in front of it. How is this a guildhall? Looks more like a meeting place for friends.

I instantly spot Gajeel's black mane of hair all the way from here. He's sitting at the bar, downing a drink of an unknown nature. So he is in this guild.

"Good morning, Lucy!" calls the young woman from the bar. She is pretty enough, but her hair is pure white. Wow. Is that natural? Just…it has to suck to go completely white before you were old.

"Morning, Mirajane!" Lucy calls back, waving. So her name is Mirajane. So I can call her MJ? Warning, incoming Spiderman jokes. I wonder if she lives next door. Hehehehe I'm such a riot.

"Oi Lucy, who's your friend?" says a strange man from a nearby table. He has this ridiculous brown hair that sticks way out from his forehead. He was smoking on a pipe, yet I couldn't see any smoke. Sitting next to him was a middle-aged man with blue hair, who was gazing curiously at us as well.

"This is Kerrich, Wakaba! He came here looking for Gajeel," Lucy explains. I freeze instantly. I didn't mean for you to scream it out loud for everyone to hear, idiot! Now Gajeel will…

Gajeel turns his head ever so slightly upon hearing his name, sparing one eye to stare over at us. His gaze and mine meet, but it doesn't seem like he recognizes me, since he just scoffs once and turns back to his drink. I'll refresh him memory in a bit.

My eyes bug out when I see this woman wearing nothing above the waist other than a bikini top. That alone isn't what's surprising. What scares me is the fact that she's drinking alcohol out of a fucking barrel!

"Save some for us, Cana!" Wakaba beseeches her, but she responds with a withering glare before going back to her drink. Damn, if looks could kill.

"Why don't you try out-drinking her?" the blue haired man suggests, a mischievous glint in his eye. Wakaba gives him an incredulous look.

"No way, Macao! I've learned my lesson," the older man protested. Macao leans in closer, grinning.

"Even if I promised you five hundred jewels if you beat her?" he adds. I don't know what jewels are, but it sounds like money. Especially since Wakaba just got this glint in his eyes.

"Cana! Drinking contest!" the older man instantly calls over to the drinking woman. She pauses from her sizable drink and grins wolfishly.

"You're on Wakaba!" she shoots back. I chuckle at the small exchange, and then I realize I'm just standing still awkwardly while Lucy makes small talk with her guild mates. What is she doing anyway? I walk over to her to find out.

"Natsu and Gray aren't back yet?" Lucy asks curiously. The man standing in front of her is gigantic, with spiked white hair and a scar on his face. He looks pretty badass.

"If you're a Man, then you go on jobs that take weeks!" the man declares. I give him this odd look. What the hell is he spouting? Lucy gives me this understanding look.

"That's just Elfman. You'll get used to it," she assures me. Elfman, huh? What kind of name is that? Sounds like something out of World of Warcraft. Anyhow, I should ask the question I've been curious about.

"Who's Natsu?" I ask curiously. Is he another member of this crazy ass guild? Before Lucy can answer, Elfman speaks up again.

"A Man!" My face falls into my hand. This guy is nuts. Lucy just gives Elfman a knowing smile and turns back to me.

"One of the strongest (and most destructive) members of our guild. He went out on a job with Gray a few days ago and hasn't come back yet," she explains. I see. That satisfies that question. Maybe I should actually go and speak to Gajeel now. So I can get out of here and then focus on finding a way home.

"Probably because they're too busy fighting each other to focus on the job!" Cana remarks, taking a break from her drinking. I notice with amusement that Wakaba is nearly passed out drunk next to her.

"All right, I should go talk to Gajeel now. It was nice meeting everyone," I finally say politely. Lucy gives me a friendly smile as I go. Though the people here are odd, I can't deny the friendly atmosphere. Macao gives me a nod as I pass, which I return. I gulp as I approach Gajeel. He obviously knows I'm coming, but he isn't turning to acknowledge me.

"Oh no, the pipe broke again!" Mirajane cries from behind the counter. As I get close to the counter, I notice someone there that I didn't see before. There's a tiny old man wearing blue and orange clothing standing on the bar near Mirajane. He's ridiculously tiny. I mean, I could probably punt him like a soccer ball. Not that I would, but you get the picture.

"Again? That's the fifth time this week," the old man complains. Mirajane stands up holding a metal pipe with a dent on one end.

"You should get that replaced," Gajeel suddenly speaks up, surprising me and Mirajane as well. She smiles brightly at the man.

"That's a good idea, Gajeel," she affirms. Mirajane is about to turn away when she noticed Gajeel staring pointedly at the pipe. Mirajane looks clueless for a second, and then she giggles. She hands the pipe to Gajeel, who then…fucking takes a bite out of it? The fuck? Yeah, I remember him eating iron, but it doesn't make it any less impossible.

"How can you do that?" I finally address Gajeel. The man turns his head to look at me, taking another bite from the metal pipe.

"What do you want, kid?" Gajeel asks bluntly after he swallowed the metal in his mouth. I blink, surprised. He definitely gets straight to the point. I feel like a complete pussy as I say my next words to him.

"Well, I just wanted to thank you for your help earlier," I tell him sincerely. It's true. I would be dead meat if it weren't for him. Gajeel just stares at me cluelessly, as if he has no idea what I'm talking about.

"Huh?" he emits, confirming my suspicions. It just figures that he would have forgotten me. I just give him a disbelieving look.

"You knocked down a tree so I could get down…" I say in an attempt to jar his memory. Gajeel takes another bite from the pipe, swallowing it quickly so that he can answer me.

"Oh. You. That kid who couldn't even beat a simple thug," he says in a bored voice. I can't help but get offended. I think I did pretty well for not having magic.

"Yeah, well I'm not a fucking superhuman," I snap at him. He just shrugs and turns his back to me.

"Weak," is all he says. My face turns red with anger.

"I'm trying to thank you, jackass!" I shout at him, gaining the attention of both Mirajane and the little old man next to her. Gajeel just waves his hand dismissively.

"Noted. Now run on home already and let me eat in peace," he replies. I jut stand there, speechless with rage. How conceited can a guy get? I'd punch him good right now, but I know better. Lance was ten times stronger than me, and Gajeel wiped the floor with him. I'm not sure there would even be an atom left of me if I attack now.

"I give the fuck up. Screw you, Gajeel," I mutter under my breath. I turn around and prepare to leave. After all, I need to get back home, and screwing around in some guild wouldn't really help me do that.

"Leaving so soon? Why don't you stay a while and have some fun?" asks Mirajane, who puts on this wide-eyed look of longing that makes me raise an eyebrow.

"Indeed! We don't get many visitors to Fairy Tail. Stay and have a drink with me!" the tiny dwarf man says. I don't see him at first, so I look around. It is only when I look down that I see him holding a pitcher full of some unknown liquid. It looks like beer of some sort, but I can't be sure. Who knows what kind of crazy drinks they get drunk off of in this world?

"Well, I need to get home as soon as…" I start, but I'm not even able to finish my sentence before this tiny guy is dragging me to a table nearby. What even.

"Nonsense! Mira, get him a drink, on me!" the old man calls, rather too excitedly. I think he's had too much to drink already. Not to mention I'm underage. I'm only twenty, and the drinking age back at Kennesaw is twenty-one. I'm a few months short of being allowed to drink.

I sigh inaudibly and shut my eyes in annoyance as I hear Mirajane scuffling around behind the counter to prepare me a no doubt disgusting concoction for me to drink. Yeah, I can definitely smell alcohol, and I hate it. I've never liked the smell of alcohol, which sort of turns me off from the entire drinking thing. My parents back home kept insisting that I was going to have a hell of a 21st birthday, with hangovers and everything, but I really didn't want to.

So how the hell do I get out of this? Mirajane has this strange looking liquid in a glass and is heading towards us, while this old fart is laughing about some stupid joke that I hadn't been paying attention to. I want to get out of here. I'm really feeling uncomfortable.

"I think I'm a bit underage to be drinking," I finally say as Mirajane gets closer. The old man stops laughing and gives me this scrutinizing look. I lean backwards instinctively. He's looking at me rather oddly. Mirajane is standing next to me with the glass, looking confused.

"That's not true, you're clearly over nineteen," the old man disagrees. I just blink in shock. The drinking age is nineteen? That means I can legally drink in this world…not that I like it. So instead of answering, I give him the best pokerface I can muster.

"Master Makarov, it wouldn't be good if we gave a minor alcohol…" Mirajane reminds him tentatively. Huh. So the old guy's name is Makarov? That's…slightly hilarious. I'm not a huge fan, but I've played Call of Duty a little bit when I was with friends, so this guy's name stands out to me. In Modern Warfare 2, there's a guy also named Makarov…who is an asshole. HA! That's just funny. I am DYING to make a reference right now, but I'm pretty sure they don't have video games here.

"I know, I know. Give him some lemonade or something then," Makarov mutters, obviously disappointed to be robbed of a potential drinking buddy. Not that I'd ever drink.

"Then what do I do with this wine?" Mirajane asks forlornly. I bite my lip to keep myself from laughing. What a pitiful look. It's not even spilled and you're practically crying over it.

"Just dispose of it somewhere," the old man answers dismissively. Mirajane barely moves before I hear a loud indignant shriek from across the room.

"I heard that! Master, throwing away Mira's wine is a crime!" screams Cana from her position atop a table. She put down her barrel apparently, since she can't drink and scream at the same time, obviously. Of course, now that the barrel is out of the way…I have a clear view to her chest. Daayuumm. That's all I can say.

Cana leaps off the table and storms over to us. I realize she is coming closer and rip my eyes away from her chest and focus on the scene before me. Don't want to seem like a total pervert. Mirajane stares as the scantily clad woman angrily snatches the glass out of her hands and downs it right there. My eyes practically bug out. Damn, this woman can drink! What the hell are her kidneys made of?

"And there's Cana, everyone. Fairy Tail's personal waste disposal," I mutter under my breath. Unfortunately, Makarov hears me and practically spews alcohol all over the table. He starts laughing uproariously.

"That's one way of putting it! I applaud you!" he shouts a little too loudly, and then starts relating my "brilliant" joke to everyone around him. Shit.

Well, at first I feel a little proud of my no doubt awesome sense of humor, but as people start laughing, I realize a little too late what was going to happen.

"He called me WHAT?" screams Cana's voice. I don't move, the words "oh shit" running through my mind over and over. She seems like the violent kind, so how the hell do I get out of this?

Next thing I know, Cana is standing over our table glaring daggers at me and raising her fist. If looks could kill…wait, fuck that. Her fist can kill. Hm, what's a good way to run the fuck away without looking like a total pussy?

"You have a death wish, buddy?" she growls irritably, baring her canines. I gulp in trepidation. However, I just thought of something witty. Let's hope it doesn't make things worse.

"Why, as a matter of fact, I do. Want to hear it?" I reply as calmly as I can manage. I see this vein twitching on her forehead and I wonder if I'm going to end up in the next country.

"You have about three seconds," Cana responds, putting on this twisted grin. I tense my body, getting ready to bolt without showing it.

"I'd like to be about ten meters away from here." She raises an eyebrow at my odd request, but she doesn't dwell on it too long.

"That can be arranged," Cana snaps, and then her fist starts moving. This is when I decide to get moving.

"Yes, yes it can," I tell her, and then several things happen at once. I leap up from the bench, kick it over to trip her up, and then I run the fuck away. The crowd of people around us apparently liked my comical getaway, as the only sounds I can hear are the sound of laughter, and a not too amused yell from Cana.

Yeah, I feel like I'm in a cartoon. Cana, to my surprise, promptly smashed the bench in two and starts chasing me. So now we are practically running in circles around the perimeter of the main room. Of course, the crowd is mostly cheering for Cana, since I'm practically a nobody here.

"Get back here!" Cana shrieks after me. Yeah bitch, why the hell would I do that? Yes, miss crazy, I will gladly walk back to you so you can beat the crap out of me. I'm a nerd, not a fucking moron.

So after the third lap of this room, with bets being made in the background, I decide to end this before I tire out and use this chance the leave the guild. I surprise Cana by cutting across the main room by leaping across the tables like some sort of ninja. This way, she's stuck going through the crowd while I'm heading for the doors.

With a triumphant grin on my face, I reach for the door handles. Suddenly, the door slams open with a lot of force, catching me in the face and knocking me across the room and into a table, which shatters under my weight.

What the fuck? I was just about to leave and, who the hell is that? Some pink…I kid you not, pink…haired MAN walks in with a few others. Accompanying him is a shirtless guy with dark bluish hair and an armored girl with a deep red hair color. Yeah, I don't mean ginger. This girl's hair is fucking scarlet. Like, anime red. I swear, there is something wrong with this world…

"I'M BACK!" the pink haired guy screams, throwing his arms up in the air. Some bright blue cat thing with wings was sitting on the guy's shoulder. And it had a fish in it's mouth. This place get's weirder and weirder.

"Welcome back, Natsu, Gray, Erza!" Mirajane calls over to them, smiling brightly. Huh, so that's Natsu and Gray. I've never heard of this Erza person, but she looks formidable. And pretty, if I may say so myself.

"Natsu! How did it go?" Lucy runs up to Natsu, her face lighting up with radiant happiness. Huh. That's a crush if I've ever seen one.

"We kicked their asses! It was a good thing you didn't go, they might have been too tough for you," Natsu answered…loudly. This guy was definitely a loud individual. Lucy crosses her arms and gives him an indignant sideways look.

"How would you know? I wasn't there," she retorts, obviously annoyed by Natsu's estimation of her strength. Gray decides to step in at that point, though for some odd reason, he was stepping out of his pants. I look away, not really wanting to see him in his boxers.

"He's probably right, Lucy. Our targets this time even gave Natsu trouble. They were no trouble for me, of course," he agreed, though his comment apparently irritated Natsu, because I could practically see the vein twitching in his head.

"What? That's not true! You were the guy I constantly had to go out of the way to save the whole mission!" Natsu shot back, which made Gray get angry as well and glare at the pink haired man.

"Bullshit! I recall you getting plastered to the wall on more than one occasion!"

"That's not how I remember it!"

"You wanna go, bud!"

Next thing I knew, the two of them were on the floor, beating the crap out of one another. I raised an eyebrow. I guess I understand Cana's comment about them fighting a lot.

"Honestly, you two," the last woman, whose name must be Erza, comments, resting her face in her palm.

"Isn't…anyone going to sto…" I begin, but then Gray goes flying backwards by a powerful hit from Natsu, bowling over a group of three people who were playing cards.

"Hey! I had a flush there! You'll pay for that!" an angry card player vows, and promptly throws himself at Gray, who elbows him in the face as he went back to fight Natsu. So the fight spreads until practically everyone in the guild is brawling, breaking tables and glasses alike.

"What is this, I don't even," I stammered, watching everyone around me beat the crap out of each other.

"Don't mind them, it's always like this," Lucy says from next to me. I raise an eyebrow. So first, it's Elfman spouting random man related comments. Now she sees huge bar fights normal? What the fuck?

Elfman, who had joined the fight apparently, is hit by a kick from Gray and is sent flying across the bar, where he collides with Gajeel and falls over the bar. Oh shit. Gajeel grabs his head where he was hit and turns around, a killer glare on his face.

"That is it! I'll put an end to this myself!" the man growls, and transforms his hands into iron and leaps into the fight. Contrary to what he just said, the fight only intensifies.

That's when I get a tap on my shoulder. I turn my head, and the first thing I see is a fist.

"Fuck!" I yell out in pain as said fist collides with my face. That's the second time something has smacked me in the face! What is it with this day and my face getting hurt? I hit the ground holding my face. Fortunately, it only hurts and isn't bleeding. Then again, I've always been able to take a few hits. I look up to see the triumphant face of a familiar scantily clad woman.

"Goddammit, Cana," I groan. Shit, I forgot about her. What was I thinking? That she was just forget about me in the middle of a bar fight?

"That's for that remark you made! And this is for staring at my chest!" Cana snapped, raising her foot. Oh shit, she saw that? I'm screwed now. Or am I? I didn't take classes with Priscilla for nothing.

When her foot came sinking down towards me, I lift both of my hands and catch it, preventing it from hitting my newly healed ribs. That would have hurt. Then, as she struggles, I slammed my knee into her remaining foot, knocking her off balance.

Cana lets out a yell and falls on top of me, her foot smacking me in the face yet again. Fucking OW! Bitch! That's when I notice that her ass is resting securely on my crotch. Shit. I have to think fast. Like, really fast. How about I picture Makarov over there naked? UGH! That worked.

I extricate myself from under her and stand up slowly, only to duck again as I see a piece of debris from a table fly overhead. I extend my hand to Cana, which she just glares at.

"Truce? I'd like to get somewhere safe before I die?" I ask amicably. She finally gives me a respectful smile and takes my hand, allowing me to hoist her to her feet.

"You're not bad. Who taught you?" Cana asks curiously, somehow ignoring Natsu and Gray trying to rip each other's throats out behind her.

"A friend of mine. She's dead now," I answer her somberly. Cana goes quiet, murmuring a simple "I'm sorry." I nod in acknowledgement, trying not to think overmuch about my late friend. That's when Makarov decides to walk up beside us. He is in high spirits, laughing at his guild's antics and occasionally yelling advice to the fighters. I let out an exasperated sigh as Natsu slams Gray into Elfman, who stampedes over him to fight Natsu, and then they both get hit with Gajeel's iron pillar hand things and get sent forward. Then Gajeel gets hit with a blast of what looked like sand being tossed by a blonde wizard, and another brawl starts. I just cannot keep up with all of this.

"Oh to be young again," Makarov chuckles to himself. Then he finally looks at me. "Who are you? Did you come to join Fairy Tail?"

"Wha me? Join a guild? Nah, I don't have any magic. The name's Kerrich by the way," I answer. If I joined this place, though I admit it looks fun, I'd fear for my life every damn day.

"Nice to meet you Kerrich! My name is Makarov, master of Fairy Tail," Makarov introduces himself. Then he must have realized what I said. "No magic? Nonsense! Everyone has magic in their bodies, even you. I can sense it in you. You just don't know how to use it."

I just stare dumbly at him. Me? With magic? I'm not from this world, so how can I have magic? I think he's just a moron. There's no way I can use magic. It would be cool, but I have to think realistically.

"Even so, what use would you have of a wizard who can't use magic?" I press. I'm honestly starting to consider staying. The people here are strong, and I'm sure if I did some research, I could find a way home, while at the same time training myself.

"You think you would be the first person to join this guild who didn't know magic? Look at Cana over there! She didn't know Card Magic until long after she joined," Makarov assured me. Suddenly I find myself torn. On one hand, if I played around here, I would never get home. On the other, I could possibly learn magic, and then use it to return home and affect my world for the better. Hell, if I got good enough, I could become a god or something when compared to everything else in my world. You know what? I'm fucking staying for now.

"You know what? Master Makarov, I'd like to join Fairy Tail," I tell him with finality. A wide grin crosses his face.

"Kerrich, it would be good to have you," he says with finality. Cana, surprisingly enough, clapped my on the shoulder in a friendly manner, seemingly having forgotten her earlier hostility.

"Things might be interesting with a newbie to bully around," she says good-naturedly. At least, I hope it was good-naturedly.

Suddenly I have a question. What the fuck did I just get myself into?

* * *

Finally. Finally I'm fucking done. It's been forever since I've posted something. I'm sorry for keeping everyone waiting. So as you've seen, our friend Kerrich has finally met and joined Fairy Tail, though he still has no idea what he's doing.

So yeah, I don't really know what to say. How have I been doing with keeping these characters IC? That's a really big problem for me. At least in golden sun, I can make the characters my own. In this case, I have to go off of examples from the anime, which is a hell of a lot tougher for me.

Oh, by the way, that dream sequence DOES have a purpose. I didn't just put it in there to be filler. It seriously has a purpose in the future. Mwahaha.

And no, there will be no KerrichXCana. I already have his pairing written in stone. Like I said, I'm trying to integrate Kerrich with the least amount of disruption to the Canon as I can.

Anyhow, time to give some Kudos to my reviewers. All two of them. T.T

**EternalFire-IceDragon**

Here's my first one. She was my first reviewer for this story, so she gets to be put on a pedestal for being awesome. No one else gets a pedestal because you weren't first. BLEAH! Anyhow, thanks for your positive review. I updated soon…ish.

**Queen of Narnia49**

Here's my second. All I can say is WHEW! Criticism. It's like walking through a desert for ten hours and then taking a cold shower. Can't have the good without the bad. Not saying I hated it of course. I love criticism. Call me a masochist. Whatever. So here's your update. And stuff.

READERS…Y U NO REVIEW SO I CAN PUT YOUR NAME HERE!

Anyhow, I'm out.

Keelah Se'lai,

The Proud Quarian,

Terran34


	4. Enter Full Moon

Here's the next chapter. Yeah, back to Victor, the random dragonslayer I added. Because hundreds of people totally don't make up dragonslayers just because they can. Yeah, I made him really strong the previous chapter, and I'm afraid he may become a Gary Stu. An online test I took told me he already was, but I don't believe it. I'll be the first to admit that Victor is not perfect. He's an asshole, to start. He's inconsiderate of others feelings, cares little about love and romance, and his life's dream is to earn enough money and buy a place far from civilization. Not exactly a model citizen, so I don't understand how that is Gary Stu. However, I am on guard. It could still happen.

Let me just take a moment to rant about the very thing I'm sure some fanfic authors have had too. Starting a new chapter. You get on the computer, open up a word document with the mindset "I'm going to write a new chapter today!" and end up with a blank page staring you in the face. I don't know about you, but that blinking little cursor is like, hypnotizing you. "Forget ALL of your ideas!" (yes, the meme.) And then all you can think about is how much you have to write before the chapter is done. I'm ready for someone to invent something to read thoughts and record them on paper. Allows for much less typing, and then the story can literally write itself. Hah, I'll keep dreaming.

Anyhow, I'm done and I'm actually going to get writing now. 10000 words, here I fucking come!

* * *

His eyes were unfocused, gazing at the other side of the carriage in which he was traveling. This was one of the few cases where Victor was forced to seriously think about his future.

The dragonslayer was used to sitting at the bar after a successful job, waiting for Hester to find something else for him to do. Victor's life previously had been nothing but waiting for his next paycheck, which he would promptly save half of it, and spend the other half to keep himself alive.

By accepting Orb's offer, he had essentially given up his way of life as a mercenary, and would have to stick around in one place. Chances are, he would go stir crazy within the first few days. However, Victor knew that eight million jewels was not something he could just turn his nose up at.

A bump in the road returned Victor to reality. He sat up and gave a nearly inaudible sigh. Traveling had never been his strong suit. It was boring, and more often than not he could run faster than the actual means of transportation. Orb's carriage was no exception.

Victor glanced out the window. The moon still hung high in the sky, showing that it was still the middle of the night. Orb said that they would reach his guild by dawn, so that left him with at least a few more hours of travel. The dragonslayer considered taking a nap, but he didn't fully trust Orb yet. Sure, he was being recruited for a dark guild, of all things, but the fact that the wizard had seen it necessary to manipulate him into doing his bidding irked Victor.

True, he had experienced joy while destroying Donnel's guild, but now it left a bittersweet feeling in his memory, knowing that it hadn't been fully his choice.

Victor groaned and slammed his fist into the side of the carriage irritably. He was thinking too much. This was one of the reasons he hated travel.

* * *

Time passed very slowly, and it got to the point where Victor was sure he was going to just get out and run the rest of the way. By the time he started moving and was actually about to bust his way out, he began to see signs of civilization.

At first it was just a bunch of ramshackle buildings hastily constructed next to large fields dedicated to agriculture. Then, then Victor began seeing heavily armored soldiers stationed at regular intervals along the road.

Now he was curious. These guys were nothing like what he had seen back in Cardinal City. They were more heavily armored and way more disciplined; Victor hadn't seen one move an inch so far.

"Take a look at this, Victor. This is Natrasil Fortress, an old fortified city that once was the capitol of the old Fiore Empire," Orb finally spoke for the first time since they traveled. His voice was muffled to Victor, as the dragonslayer was sitting inside the carriage still.

"Thanks for the history lesson," Victor grumbled sarcastically, but he still peered out the window to see what they were heading for. His eyes went wide.

Natrasil Fortress was aptly named. The city was incredibly complex, but organized. From what Victor could see, the city was separated into different tiers, with each tier being situated higher than the others. A large stone wall circled the base of the city, patrolled constantly by soldiers and armed with powerful magic ballistae that dotted the walls every so often.

"Like what you see? The only place more impressive than this is the Magic Council at Era," Orb continued. His carriage reached the main entrance to the city, which was guarded by at least of score of soldiers. Travelers passed in and out of the city underneath the deadly looking portcullis made of lacrima-enforced steel.

"Whatever," Victor muttered, his response causing Orb to chuckle. He was impressed at the layout of the massive city, to be sure, but it wasn't something to ramble on about.

"Halt!" a soldier commanded them. Orb obediently slowed his carriage to a stop just in front of the gates. The soldier that had called to them walked up to them stiffly, grasping his spear in his right hand.

"What is your busine…oh, Orb! It is good to see you again, sir," the soldier corrected his official tone when he saw who he was speaking to. Victor raised an eyebrow. He had thought that this dark guild would be well concealed, but it seemed that even the military was on their side.

"You too, soldier. Keep up the good work," Orb replied officially, a cool smile on his cultured face. The soldier saluted and moved aside to let the carriage pass. Victor was lurched about in his seat as the carriage started moving again, passing underneath the menacing gate.

"So, what, you even have the military in your pocket?" Victor asked curiously, raising his voice so that the wizard could hear him. Orb found the question amusing, as indicated by the laugh he emitted.

"You are mistaken, my friend. Full Moon are the powers that be here in Natrasil," the wizard corrected him. Victor blinked. So what Orb just said was that this city was completely under the control of the Full Moon guild.

"So if the city is openly controlled by an active dark guild, why hasn't the council taken steps to wipe you out?" Victor questioned. As a rogue wizard, Victor had been on the run from the council for a long time, so he was intrigued.

"Openly? Of course not. The city is officially ruled by Duke Marynkaz, but he does as we command," Orb explained. Victor nodded, understanding. So Full Moon ruled the city through bribery or blackmail of some sort. Effective, but tenuous at best.

They fell into a silence then, as Victor chose to observe the surroundings. On the lowest level of the city, it was the most crowded. In fact, the dragonslayer could tell that the poorest citizens lived here. The clothes the passerby were wearing were by no means fancy, and the houses here that lined the walls were made of grimy stone. Victor was disgusted.

"This is the plebian district. Those less fortunate spend their time here, usually handling agriculture in the undercity and making sure the city gets fed," Orb explained.

"If they tend to the food source for the city, why are they so run down?" the dragonslayer asked curiously.

"Oh no, my friend. You see, the plebeians are much better off here than in other cities. The Duke himself regularly subsidizes the citizens in this district with a portion of the profit that their food sales make," Orb explained happily. The wizard seemed to delight in talking about his home. Victor was getting annoyed at how Orb kept referring to him as his "friend." Victor still didn't trust the guy, and he was certainly not friends with him. "That's why you don't see the poor or homeless begging in the streets. They have the money to keep themselves alive, but don't have nearly enough to move to the upper tiers."

Their carriage moved up the steadily inclining walkway until they reached another gate. Victor assumed that there were similar gates barring the way to each tier. It also made the city very defensible; if one tier was lost, then the soldiers could merely fall back to the next gate.

The next tier was much less dismal compared to the plebian district. This one, while still crowded, was very lively. Victor could see hundreds of ramshackle stalls lining the walls, where many a merchant called out to the passerby. There were several banners hanging down from the walls, advertising the presence of a more sophisticated walk-in shop. It was around these shops that most of the crowds congregated. It didn't take a genius to figure out that this was the shopping district, but Orb launched into another lengthy explanation, which Victor ignored, his boredom growing.

The next two tiers, according to Orb, were residential. The middle class lived in these areas, separated out by what their jobs were. Merchants were allowed the lower tier for the sake of convenience, while the upper tier was reserved for the more privileged members of the middle class.

Orb was all too willing to explain the next tier's purpose as well. Victor groaned inwardly and had to restrain himself from blowing the carriage up to get the man to shut up. He certainly liked his explanations.

"This tier is where the private corporations make their headquarters. Merchant guilds is one of the many examples of such that can be found here. In fact, this is where our guild is located," Orb continued. Victor finally started paying attention, as it seemed that their trip was nearly complete.

The carriage finally came to a halt just in front of a fairly large building with the words "Preston's Lacrima." Victor quirked an eyebrow at the fairly odd name, but he ignored it and slammed the carriage door open, finally glad to be back on his feet. Orb seemed surprised by his impatience, as the wizard had been moving to open the door for him. Orb shrugged and recalled the carriage to one of his many lacrima, the vehicle disappearing in a flash of cyan light.

"Isn't this supposed to be your guild?" Victor questioned, gazing up at the name of the store. Orb smiled and opened the door into the shop. A bell chimed as he entered, gaining the attention of the shopkeeper that was standing at a desk.

"We're nearly there, Victor. Have patience," the wizard chided him gently. Victor growled and crossed his arms. Patience was not something he had in a limitless supply.

"Ah, Lord R…" the shopkeeper began, only to be cut off. Orb's eyebrows tightened and his expression turned dark. In the blink of an eye, a lacrima was in the wizards hand. A blast of energy shot forth from the glowing orb, nearly taking the shopkeeper's head off.

"Do not call me by that name," Orb commanded. Victor was surprised by the sudden show of force by the wizard. The dragonslayer's first impression of the man was all talk, but it seemed he wasn't above using intimidation to achieve his goals. Victor found himself respecting the guy a little more.

"Of…of course, sir Orb. M…m…my apologies…" the wizened shopkeeper stuttered violently, clearly frightened out of his wits. The steaming hole straight through the wall just next to him served as a testament to that fear. Orb relaxed and replaced the lacrima back on his belt, a cool smile returning to his face once more.

"Apology accepted. Now then, Victor, this is Renn Preston, the owner of this simple, yet beneficial shop," Orb introduced the quite old man to Victor. When Renn held out his hand for Victor to shake, the dragonslayer grunted and turned the other way. Renn gulped and lowered his hand.

"I don't care who he is," Victor responded, rather bluntly. Orb chuckled a little at that.

"You should care. If you don't inform him before leaving the guild for any reason, we'll send someone to retrieve you," the wizard warned. Victor glanced back at Orb with an irritated look. Did that mean he couldn't come and go as he pleased?

"That's bullshit. I like to move around, and now you're telling me some old fart has the power to tell me when I can and can't go?" Victor demanded. He certainly wasn't one to stay silent when he had something to say. Orb shook his head.

"You misunderstand. You may roam as you please, but our guild wishes to keep record of anyone who enters and leaves the guild. If someone fails to check in or out, then we will think something is wrong. It's merely a formality, you see," the wizard corrected. Victor was slightly reassured, but the annoyed look on his face didn't go away.

"I hate formalities," the dragonslayer spat. Orb shrugged at that. Then, the wizard moved back towards Renn.

"If you please, Renn," was all the wizard had to say before the old man scattered to do what he was told. Renn glowed with a crimson light, and he swiped his hand to the right.

As Victor watched, a blood red magic circle faded into existence on the back wall of the store, rotating and covering everything nearby in an eerie shade of red. In the center of the magic circle was the image of a crimson full moon. After a few moments, the wall encompassed by the magic circle shrunk and contracted to nothing, disappearing into the center of the circle. The circle faded not long after that.

Now that the wall was gone, Victor could see a staircase made of a different material than the rest of the store. The staircase extended downwards out of sight. Lining the walls downwards were flaming lacrima that served to light the way down.

"Follow me, Victor. Your new comrades await you," Orb pressed. The wizard then descended the staircase, until his figure was lost from view. Victor grumbled incoherently under his breath, but did so.

The stairs were made out of a strange black stone that had a completely different texture than the walls outside. Every step Victor took made a metallic click when his boots hit the ground. He found it intriguing that such a material existed.

The lower they descended, the more Victor became aware of voices. Raucous laughter and the sound of rhythmic pounding could be heard. The dragonslayer didn't know what to expect. It sounded like there was a bar down here, rather than a guild.

When they finally reached the end of the extensive staircase, the corridor opened up into a massive chamber. Victor was in awe at the layout and architecture of the place.

The floors and walls were made of the same black material as the stairs. Lining either side of the massive chamber were multitudes of tables and chairs, where men and women dressed in identical midnight blue clothing sat and conversed or played card games. Another figure dressed in the same clothing would occasionally walk down the aisles and distribute food and drinks to the crowd.

In the center of the room was a completely cleared space, where other members of the guild danced, grinding against one another or doing their own thing to the music. The music itself came from a stage just in front of the dance floor, where a strange man wearing personalized evergreen clothing with black body armor was playing on an electric guitar. Floating around him were several other instruments that seemingly played themselves.

"Ah, it seems that Titan is here today. He's a one-man rock band, you see," Orb explained, a happy grin crossing his face upon reaching his guild. Victor ignored him and continued to survey the room.

Behind the stage was a dual staircase that led to a large raised area that took up the whole back end of the room. On the staircase, directly behind the stage, was a giant rendition of the standard crimson full moon. Atop the raised area, several doors lined the walls, leading to other areas of the guild.

"So where are your S-Ranked wizards? I want to see how strong you guys are?" Victor finally said as the entered the main room. The moment Orb entered the room, the other guild members took immediate notice.

"Hey all, it's Orb!" declared a particularly loud man who was halfway through a bottle of brew. His yell got the attention everyone else, who began sending greetings at the wizard.

"Greetings, Danar," Orb acknowledged the man's words with a smile. Even Titan hopped down from the stage to come say hello. Strangely enough, he dropped his guitar, which remained floating in midair. The rest of his instruments continued to play as if the wizard had never left.

"You took a lot longer than I expected. This new recruit give you trouble?" Titan commented. He had a mischievous look on his sweaty face. Titan himself was a skinny man who held himself with confidence. His dark hair, which was streaked with red, was short like Orb's, but incredibly untidy, flopping all over the place. It was clear by his posing and his tone that he thought that he was "all that." It was an attitude that Victor despised.

"'This new recruit' is standing right here," Victor snapped at the man, who was taken aback by the latent hostility present in the dragonslayer's tone. Titan raised an eyebrow.

"Chill dude, you're among friends," he remarked. Victor scoffed at that statement. Friends? Not bloody likely.

"Victor performed amazingly at my entry test. Actually, we scored quite the powerhouse here. You see, Victor is a dragonslayer," Orb continued, acting as if he hadn't heard Victor's displeasure. Now Titan was visibly impressed.

"No way! A dragonslayer?! Far out!" the punk wannabe exclaimed in shock. He looked at Victor in a new light. The dragonslayer shifted uncomfortably, not used to people discussing his powers.

"Indeed. Titan, would you go and inform the master that we have arrived?" Orb requested. Titan looked put out, but he nodded and rushed back towards the stairs to do as he was asked.

"Can I do a job now? Seeing as how your little test didn't result in me being any richer," Victor asked irritably.

"Patience, Victor. The master will want to meet you before you head out," Orb replied patiently. Victor grunted and moved towards the tables, only for him and Orb to be approached by one of the women from the dance floor.

"Orby! Hi!" the woman drawled, clearly drunk. She practically flung herself at the wizard. Orb, without even looking at her, sidestepped so that the woman fell past him and hit the ground. "Ow…that wasn't very nice! I just wanted a dance!"

"Unfortunately, I am busy at the moment," the wizard replied smoothly, still refusing to meet the drunk woman's gaze. She looked put out, but then she looked at Victor.

"What about…" she began, but that was as far as she got.

"No," was Victor's immediate response. The woman pouted and moved back to the dance floor, whining that neither of them were any fun. "Who the hell was that broad?"

"That…was Sonja. She's a powerful wizard, but she enjoys her male attention a little too much," Orb answered wryly. "Though I have to admit, that was the fastest rejection she's ever seen."

"So what you're saying, is that she's a slut," Victor reiterated, as bluntly as always. Orb sighed, but nodded. "Figures. So far, I've seen a punk wannabe and a dunk slut. Is this the best this guild has to offer?"

Before Orb could even answer, there was the sound of a chair falling over. Victor and Orb looked to see another guild member, dressed in the usual midnight blue clothes, standing up and looking enraged.

"I won't let that one stand, you lousy excuse for a wizard," the man snapped, glaring directly at Victor. Orb sighed again and turned the other direction. He seemed used to seeing this sort of occurrence.

"Oh? So you have guts," Victor replied, meeting the man's gaze coolly. The two of them gazed at one another intensely. "But I've seen nothing but weaklings since coming here."

"That's it!" the man shouted obnoxiously. His yell was enough to attract the attention of many of the other members of the guild. "I'm not going to stand for some newbie walking in here and talking shit."

Victor could hear other members of the guild encouraging the man, and others shouting derisive remarks at himself.

"Yeah! Get out of our guild, you blasted newbie!"

"Take him down, Blake!"

"A fight!"

Victor scoffed and stretched his arms, showing Blake his readiness for a fight. Blake pulled out leather bands, and as Victor watched, tied them around his fists.

"You. In the Dark Room. Now," Blake demanded, thrusting a thumb back towards a red door located in the wall not far from them. Victor didn't need to be a genius to figure out that the Dark Room must be a place where the guild members went to fight.

The dragonslayer looked over his shoulder as he heard someone approaching him from behind. Orb wore a smile as he walked up next to them. Victor sighed, thinking that Orb was going to spoil his fun.

"Go ahead, Victor. Maybe this will show you what our guild is like," Orb whispered. Victor was surprised that Orb was actually encouraging them, but he didn't dwell on it long. The dragonslayer grinned and walked towards the indicated door, following Blake.

"Better hope you don't regret this," Victor warned with an evil smirk crossing his face. Blake scoffed, but didn't turn to look. The wizard opened the red door into a moderately sized room that had absolutely nothing in it. It was a completely empty room.

Victor raised an eyebrow as he noticed cracks and ruptures in the stone from past fights. Apparently the guild went all out in this room. It pleased him to know that he was about to do the same.

"So what, you plan to 'defend your guild's honor' by fighting me?" Victor spat disdainfully. His tone clearly showed what he thought of such a motive. Blake sneered.

"You could say that. It would be more precise to say that I'm testing you. If you can't even beat me, then you don't belong here," Blake corrected him. His words caused Victor to become angry. Testing him?

"Enough with the damn tests, you pathetic excuse for a dark guild!" Victor roared in rage. His body erupted with an aura of black smoke, swirling up around him and filling the room with his magic power. Blake gazed at the spectacle, impressed.

"Blizzard Knuckle," Blake whispered. The leather bands around his fists started glowing with cyan light, and the temperature around his hands dropped scores of degrees.

Both combatants launched themselves at one another in unison. Victor coated his fist with shadow and slammed his fist forward. Blake's fist collided head on with Victor's, causing an explosion of shadow and ice to fill the room.

The sheer amount of force behind Victor's punch caused Blake to reel back and nurse his fist. At the same time, the extreme cold behind Blake's attack caused Victor's hand to become coated with a thin film of ice, which then shattered and dug into the dragonslayer's skin.

The result was a comical scene where both fighters recoiled and nursed their hands. Other members from the guild looked on the fight from the doorway, bets being made on the outcome of the fight.

Blake and Victor rushed at one another once more. This time, Blake leapt up and brought his leg around. Victor ducked under the attack and swiped upwards with a shadowy fist. The other wizard was swift enough to leap back and retaliate with a flurry of furious punches with his freezing cold hands.

Victor evaded punch after punch as he collected himself for another attack. Each time Blake's fist would rush past him, the dragonslayer could feel the temperature drop.

Blake finally managed to land a hit on Victor's upper torso, chilling his skin to the bone and leaving a bruise upon the dragonslayer's torso. Victor gritted his teeth, but wasted no time in striking back. Blake was too busy celebrating his hit to dodge Victor's powerful kick.

Blake hit the wall on the other side of the room, cracking it an eliciting a grunt of pain from the wizard. He landed on his feet however, and then brought his fists together.

"Sleep Knuckle," Blake whispered. The leather bands on his fists began glowing a lavender color. Victor noticed the color change, but thought nothing of it. Instead, the dragonslayer collected shadows in each of his hands and rushed to attack once more.

The two warriors engaged in a furious melee, fists swinging at one another, the intent to kill evident in each attack. Victor punched forward with his right fist, which was then redirected by Blake's wrist. As the other wizard retaliated with a right hook, Victor caught his fist and held it there. His next attack was a right uppercut, which slammed right into Blake's sternum. The hit caused the wizard to reel back, which gave Victor enough time to blast him backwards with a torrent of shadow released from his palm.

Blake tumbled end over end in midair, but he managed to land on his feet, his legs bending in to absorb the impact and his hand touching the ground to steady himself.

Victor rushed forward in an attempt to end the fight, but Blake was ready for him. When the dragonslayer lashed out with both fists, Blake hit the ground and slammed one of his lavender glowing fists into Victor's chest.

That's when Victor began to feel woozy. He stumbled backwards, holding a hand to his head. He suddenly found it difficult to remain standing. His eyelids began to droop. Victor realized that something was going on, so he shot his eyes open, but they only began to fall closed again.

"How do you like my Sleep Knuckle?" Blake taunted confidently, earning laughs from his guildmates.

"Ha, what a loser. Couldn't even handle one of Blake's status punches."

"Come on, even I was able to take a hit from that!"

The taunts coming from the Full Moon guild members registered in Victor's brain. His eyes shot open with rage, black smoke covering his corneas and trickling into the air.

"W…what? You're awake? Impossible. A runt like you shouldn't be able to…" Blake protested when he saw Victor's eyes open. When he saw that the dragonslayer's eyes were now pure black, the wizard grew slightly nervous.

A dark aura exploded from around Victor, shattering the stone floor around his feet and causing the very air to dilate around him. With a single roar, Victor launched himself at Blake.

Blake moved forward to combat Victor, but was taken aback by the ferocity and strength behind the dragonslayer's attacks. Punch after punch, Blake could only dodge or block. Each time he blocked, he was left with a mark that would soon form into a bruise. Blake took a hit to the cheek, and then another to the lower torso. Although hurt, he managed to duck under Victor's next assault and pound his fist into the dragonslayer's chest. This time, however, the sleep magic did absolutely nothing, and earned Blake a knee to the face.

Blake rolled backwards, blood dripping from his nose. He wiped the blood away with a hand, letting it streak across his arm. He the clenched his fists again, unwilling to give up.

"Wind Knuckle!" Blake yelled out. The lavender glow on his leather bands faded away, only to be replaced by a white one. A breeze began to flow through the room. There were gasps from the onlookers while they watched the battle unfolding in front of them.

Blake saw Victor sprinting at him once more, and he ran forward and met the dragonslayer halfway. The wizard lashed out with his right fist. Victor easily dodged the attack, but the grin on Blake's face indicated that not all was well. Victor's eyes widened as a powerful gust of wind slammed into him. The impact caused a bruise to form where the wind landed.

"You see these fists? Now that I activated Wind Knuckle, you can't just dodge them!" Blake revealed, and then he went on the offensive. Victor was troubled by the wizard's revelation, but he wasn't able to think up a way to avoid the fists and the wind that accompanied them in time. On instinct, the dragonslayer avoided each of the punches that the wizard sent at him. However, the gusts of wind buffeted his body relentlessly, and after a particularly powerful attack, Victor was sent skidding backwards.

The dragonslayer grew annoyed. The air currents flowing around Blake made it nearly impossible to get close to him, and his attacks couldn't be avoided anymore. The two combatants clashed again in the center of the room, though it was clear that Victor was taking more damage than Blake was.

"You should just give up! No blasted newbie can withstand my Wind Knuckle!" Blake began to taunt the dragonslayer, the grin now permanently etched onto his face. Victor didn't respond very well to taunts and overconfidence.

Victor skidded backwards once more after being hit by the wizard's fist. While still skidding, Victor planted his foot into the ground. His foot gouged a trench in the ground until he finally came to a halt. The dragonslayer suddenly cupped his hands into makeshift tubes, bringing them up to his mouth.

Blake raised an eyebrow, clearly not realizing what it was Victor was trying to do. He began to get an inkling when the dragonslayer started sucking in air, his cheeks puffing out.

"It…it can't be…" Blake stammered incredulously. He took a step back, his eyes going wide with shock.

"Yami no hoko!" Victor roared, and then he released all of the power he had been gathering within him. A powerful stream of darkness erupted from the dragonslayer's lips and blasted forward. Blake was completely unprepared for an attack of such magnitude, and was hit dead on by the blast.

The wizard let out a yell of agony as the darkness shredded his clothes to bits and cut into his skin. He was sent flying backwards into the wall, and then the darkness enveloped him and exploded.

Victor grinned wolfishly, looking with satisfaction at the destruction left by his breath attack. The onlookers were shocked into silence by the sheer power of a dragonslayer. Orb watched from the front, a satisfied smile on his cultured face.

The cloud of darkness faded away, revealing Blake. Despite the severity of the attack he had just taken head on, the wizard was still standing. His Full Moon uniform was completely shredded, leaving him shirtless above the waist. His torso was blackened and burnt from the darkness, blood seeping through small openings in the tender skin.

Victor was surprised to see a grin form on Blake's lips. The wizard supported himself by resting his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.

"I don't believe it. There are dragonslayers other than the ones in Fairy Tail," Blake panted, grudging respect evident in his voice. Victor cracked his knuckles callously, waiting to see if he had to finish the fight or not. "I think I misjudged you."

"What, you're telling me that's all you've got?" Victor scoffed, his pompous attitude not changing one bit despite the wizard's compliments. Blake smirked and straightened, stretching his arm muscles. Victor was secretly impressed to see the wizard standing despite his injuries.

"Are you kidding me? This is the most fun I've had in ages," Blake shot back. He beckoned with both hands for Victor to come at him. "Come on, let's finish this!"

"That's more like it!" Victor responded in satisfaction. The wizards gathered their magic power and lunged at one another once more.

Victor stopped in the middle of the room before reaching Blake as he felt the strongest, most evil source of magic power he had ever felt in his entire life. Not even his strength came anywhere close to this, a fact that caused sweat to bead on his brow.

Blake skidded to a stop as well, obviously feeling the evil magic filling the room as well. The color leeched out of the wizard's face in an instant, leaving him pale and shaking. Victor wasn't a coward, but he'd never felt anything like this. Was this one of the ten wizard saints?

A vortex of darkness appeared in the floor just between the two combatants. The darkness emanating from the floor was so deep, it seemed to suck the very light out of the air. Flames erupted from the ground around the vortex. The temperature shot up scores of degrees, forcing the wizards to step away from the vortex for their own safety.

A shadowy, ominous figure spiraled up from the floor, floating in midair directly above the vortex. Dressed in a pure black robe made of the finest material, the figure's mere presence was enough to send waves of fear through the onlookers. The figure was hooded and wore black gloves, so that no skin was showing at all. The only things that indicated that the figure was alive at all were the two glowing crimson points of light that shone from under the hood.

The vortex of darkness and flame slowly faded away, and the figure floated gently to the ground, its black boots touching the ground with a soft click. Almost immediately after it had appeared, the onlookers, including Blake and Orb, fell the ground in a kneel, their foreheads nearly touching the ground as they showed their penitence to the incredible figure.

Victor gazed upon the new arrival with respect. The sheer amount of power that the figure gave off was enough to make even him hesitate. He didn't kneel like the others. Instead, upon noticing their penitence, Victor was confused.

"It is good to see you, Master," Orb was the first to speak since the figure's arrival. Victor looked back at the figure, now realizing that Full Moon's guild master was standing before him.

"Welcome back," chorused every other member of the guild that was in the room. The master stood silent, not saying a word as he viewed his guild. His ruby red eyes then turned to Victor. A bead of sweat rolled down the dragonslayer's temple.

"So what, you're the master, huh?" Victor finally said, getting over his initial trepidation at the intimidating appearance of the guild master. The master said nothing at first, and instead continued to gaze down at the dragonslayer. "H…hey, say something already."

"_I am Xanatos," _the master revealed. The master's voice was in the form of a menacing whisper, loud enough to be heard, but quiet enough to inspire fear in the hearts of those who heard it. "_Full Moon is my guild."_

"Duh, that's what guild master means," Victor snapped, crossing his arms. The other guild members hissed in shock or winced at the dragonslayer's blatant disrespect for Xanatos. The robed figure didn't seem to be angry, but then again, it was nearly impossible to read the emotions of the master.

"_All forms from the eternal darkness, and returns there once its purpose is done. The only thing that is certain is the rising of the moon," _Xanatos continued, raising his robed arms into the air. Victor raised an eyebrow, but let the guild master continue to speak.

"_Everyone standing in this room realizes the roots of darkness that intertwine with their hearts, and join together as brethren, taking solace in that singular truth. Nothing is pure…innocence is an illusion…justice does not exist," _Xanatos's words began sounding a little like a cultist to Victor, but he continued to listen respectively.

"_This world is devoid of justice, love, and happiness. It is only we, the embodiments of the light of the Full Moon, that can bring hope to the world," _Xanatos finished, and then he gazed across the room to the guild members.

"So it shall be," the guild members spoke in unison. As soon as that last statement left their mouths, they rose from their penitent position and stood up once more, smiles returning to their faces.

"Master Xanatos, it's so good to see you again," Orb greeted the robed figure jovially, reaching his hand forward. Xanatos shook the wizard's hand, much to Victor's surprise. He had expected the master to be less of the touchy-feely type. But he guessed appearance could be deceiving.

"_Same to you, Orb. How did you fare on your assignment?" _Xanatos questioned curiously. Orb looked over at Victor.

"Very well, actually. Victor here passed my little test with flying colors. I don't believe there was anything left of Donnel by the time Victor was done with him," the wizard replied. Victor grunted and waited for the guild master to actually speak to him.

"_That is good to hear. Tell me, where are the rest of the S-Rank Wizards?" _the master continued. Orb blinked and scratched his chin, clearly trying to remember.

"Well, Titan is here entertaining. Fear is still out on an S Rank quest. I don't think he'll be back for a while. Thorn is just in town, but she's conducting one of her rituals. I'll never understand her kind." Orb took a moment to laugh good-naturedly. "Phantasm went out with her team not long ago, and Genesis is…well he's Genesis. I doubt he'll be back for another year or so."

"_I see. Perhaps it is time to begin looking for candidates," _Xanatos replied. Orb remained silent as he thought about that for a moment.

"You may be right. However, I guess we better tend to our dragonslayer here. He has an issue with patience," Orb joked. Victor shot him a glare, but he knew the wizard was right. Xanatos finally returned his gaze to Victor. A small crimson magic circle formed in the master's hand. Before Victor even knew what was going on, the master's hand snapped out in the blink of an eye and slapped onto his shoulder. Victor yelped as his shoulder began to burn like fire. The pain only lasted for a moment, however, and soon faded away.

The dragonslayer looked at his shoulder to see the Full Moon emblem, the crimson moon, emblazoned there. He looked it over, secretly pleased with the way it looked.

"_You are now a member of Full Moon, Victor. Your strength as a dragonslayer is very welcome," _Xanatos declared. Victor sighed. His dissatisfaction caused Orb to glance at the dragonslayer with confusion. "_Is something the matter?"_

"Yeah…it's mostly a matter of curiosity on my part. If you'll indulge me?" Victor requested. Xanatos gazed at him in silence. After while, he nodded slowly. A wolfish grin crossed the dragonslayer's face. He took a few steps back, and summoned his magic power.

Shadows exploded from around his form. Victor shouted wordlessly while he summoned his power. Orb's eyes widened when he realized what Victor was trying to do and he hastened to put some distance between him and the guild master.

"Shadows guide me! Yami no…" Victor planted his foot into the ground, cracking and rupturing it, and then propelled himself forward. Black shadows swirled around his outstretched fist. A dark curtain of shadow peeled away from him, the dragonslayer drawing ever closer to the guild master. "TEKKEN!"

Xanatos never moved an inch as the dragonslayer soared towards him with powerful shadows heading directly for him. The second the dragonslayer drew close enough the master retaliated.

A massive black magic circle appeared in midair directly in front of Xanatos. Blood red flames danced through the air around the circle, threading in an around the runes. Victor's fist collided with the circle, and to the dragonslayer's surprise, he couldn't get any further. No matter how hard he pushed, his powerful fist attack could not penetrate the magic circle.

A powerful gust of wind erupted from the point of impact, causing Xanatos's robes to flap backwards in breeze. Still without moving, Xanatos fought back.

The master's eyes flashed evilly, and then the magic circle exploded into a mixture of shadow and flame, engulfing the dragonslayer and bearing him through the air at speeds faster than any human should ever be able to attain. Victor slammed into the wall and was driven into it, shouting out his pain all the while.

"Amazing, Master Xanatos!" Orb praised the robed figure, though his expression showed shock and fear. Victor was no push over, and for him to be so soundly defeated with one blow was frightening, to say the least.

Victor fell out of the wall and hit the ground, leaving a man-shaped imprint in the wall. He rose to his feet not long after that, his skin covered in burns. It didn't take a genius to realize that Xanatos had been holding back, as Victor was sure he'd be dead if the master had gone all out.

"Ha…I guess I joined the right guild after all," Victor wheezed, his chest heaving with effort. The dragonslayer walked up to Xanatos with respect showing in his gaze. "It's been ages since I've met someone strong enough to defeat me."

Xanatos took the hand that Victor offered and shook it lightly. Even so, Victor could feel the strength in the grip. Respect from Victor was a rare thing, yet the dragonslayer now respected the master more than anyone he'd ever met.

"I have a goal now. It's you, Xanatos. Someday, I'll defeat you, just as soundly as you did me. I'll stick around until then," Victor declared, a genuine grin on his face. Xanatos listened silently, and then acknowledged the statement with a slight nod. Orb smirked openly, however.

"Ah, good. Unattainable goals are the best kind," the wizard remarked. Victor's grin vanished, and he glared at Orb. The S-rank wizard chose that moment to back out of the room swiftly.

"_I look forward to seeing your growth, Victor. You are now free to choose jobs as you please," _Xanatos said at last. "_Now, I must take my leave."_

Victor nodded and left the room, returning to the guild's main room. Titan was back on stage, playing a fiddle of all things, and playing it well. The dance floor grew rowdier, causing the dragonslayer to shake his head.

Xanatos glided across the floor and out of the room. As the other guild members politely called out to him, the master ascended the stairs and entered one of the doors at the top.

Victor shrugged and walked over the exit to the guild. It was here, on the right of the exit that all the job requests were posted. He stalked up to the board and began scanning the requests, looking for one good enough for him. A hand then clamped onto his shoulder.

"Seems we never got to finish that fight, huh," Blake stated, standing next to the dragonslayer. Victor brushed off the wizard's hand with his own, earning a chuckle from him.

"No, we didn't. The guild master showed up before we could," Victor replied, not looking at the wizard, instead continuing to look over the jobs. Blake sighed and went silent, seeming to look at the jobs as well.

"Well, do you want to go on a job with me? I kinda want to see how you do things," Blake requested. Victor turned his head slowly, his favorite "are you fucking kidding me" look stamped on his face. Blake laughed hysterically at the look on the dragonslayer's face. "I'm guessing you do things alone?"

"I work better on my own," Victor muttered, crossing his arms again. Blake shrugged nonchalantly.

"I could care less. Pick a job, and then I'll tag along," he pressed. Victor growled and shot a glare at the wizard.

"Didn't I just say no?!" he snapped. Blake laughed and shrugged again.

"Didn't I just say I could care less? I'm going with you no matter WHAT you say," the wizard affirmed. Victor let his face fall into his hands, and he groaned irritably.

Resigned to the fact that he was going to have unwanted company on his next job, Victor returned his gaze to the job board. He was about to start reading one when he heard someone coming down the stairs from the lacrima shop.

A girl in her late teens stepped down the stairs delicately, choosing each step carefully. She stood out from the other members of Full Moon, considering that she didn't wear the standard uniform. Since the only members of the guild that Victor had seen not wearing the uniform were all S-Rank of higher, then it wasn't that far-fetched to conclude that this girl was among their number.

Her face was smooth and angled nicely, with a straight nose and two liquid red eyes. Her thick, silky black hair extended from her head, rolling over her shoulders and descending down her back until it reached a point just above her waist. Her bangs were parted at the middle and spread to either side, where they were tucked behind her ears.

Her ears were both pierced, each bearing a small orb shaped earring. Upon closer inspection, Victor could tell that they were in fact tiny lacrima. That was a piece of jewelry that had both form and function, as it gave the girl a source of backup magic power if she needed it.

Her lip was also pierced on the lower right, with a tiny metal ring fitted there. Also, a set of fangs poked out from under her upper lip. Victor didn't know if they were real or were merely for aesthetic value, but the intimidation factor it lent her was nothing to be scoffed at.

The girl wore black clothing that matched her hair. Her clothes were very revealing, as her shirt was cut low in the front and showed a considerable amount of her midriff. For her lower body, she wore tight-fitting black pants that were tucked into a set of black boots that possessed several metal buckles. With every step, her heavy boots thudded onto the slick ground.

Blake saw her approach and a smile crossed his face. He walked near her as she walked into the main chamber, waving a hand shyly at her.

"Oh, Thorn! It's good to see you back," the wizard greeted her politely. Thorn shifted her head slightly to view Blake, who gulped. Then she returned his greeting with a friendly smile, revealing her fangs. Blake sighed in relief when she continued on her way.

"Who the hell is Thorn?" Victor asked, watching her go. Blake's eyes shot open wide and he hissed in warning at Victor, who just looked confused.

"My, that's not very polite, is it?" the girl spoke, turning around and gazing at Victor. She walked back towards him elegantly, attracting the dragonslayer's gaze. "If you want to know about someone, shouldn't you ask them directly, rather than asking behind their back?"

"Tch, does it look like I give a shit?" Victor muttered, turning his head away from her piercing gaze. Blake slowly backed away, a comical look of fear on his face. Thorn watched Victor with interest. Victor coughed awkwardly when he realized that she was sizing him up.

"You certainly have guts for a new recruit," Thorn remarked. Victor scoffed, but didn't respond. She cocked her head, a cheeky smile crossing her face.

"W…what? What the hell do you want?" the dragonslayer snapped, coloring slightly. Thorn laughed at his reaction and stalked down the stairs, waving a hand behind her. Victor was now utterly confused.

"Just saying hello. Maybe you should learn some social skills," Thorn replied as she strode towards the dance floor. The other guild members noticed her arrival and began calling out to her, but she paid them no attention. At least, she paid the rank and file no attention. When Orb came to greet her, she stopped and embraced the man briefly.

"How did it go, Thorn?" Orb asked when they broke apart. Thorn reached down into her pocket with a black gloved hand and withdrew what looked to Victor like a human finger bone.

"Very well, surprisingly. Despite being a fallen angel, Lucifer is quite the softie. That is, once you get past his tendency to torture you mercilessly," Thorn responded. Victor blinked. What the hell was this girl talking about?

"I bet he relented once he realized it wasn't going to faze you," Orb commented. Thorn nodded and returned the finger bone to her pocket.

"Indeed. So how about a dance before I take a look at the dance floor?" Thorn offered, indicating the dance floor. Orb glanced at the dance floor with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Now you sound like Sonja," the wizard remarked. Thorn's immediate respond was the smack Orb hard on the face, leaving a red handprint behind. Then, the girl stalked to the dance floor herself. "I…probably deserved that one."

"Titan…play me something good!" Thorn demanded, a smile returning to her face. Titan nodded and moved over towards the electric guitar once more. The music immediately changed into something more metal. Victor could hear choral accompaniment that seemed to come from nowhere, adding the surreal sound of the new song. It was rousing dark music, a genre that seemed to fit the S-Rank wizard.

Thorn began to dance seductively, raising her arms into the air and twirling around. She weaved her way into the crowd, where she started to dance with another girl.

"This guild is messed up," Victor remarked. Blake stood next to him, a comical look on his face.

"I agree. Come on, choose a job and let's go," the wizard demanded. Victor sighed again, realizing he'd never get rid of this guy. The dragonslayer turned back to the request board.

It seemed his time in Full Moon would be a most interesting one.

* * *

What is wrong with me recently? I'm finding it harder and harder to reach my 9000 word minimum, and I don't know why. It's not writers block, I mean, I'm writing as much as I can, but when I reach the area in the story where I want to pause, my word count is not where I want it to be. AGH!

I'm probably agonizing over nothing. I mean, there aren't that many people that hold themselves to this kind of a standard. Anyhow, time to add some notes about this chapter.

First off, I made two references. One to Crisis Core: Final Fantasy, and the other to Pirates of the Caribbean. See if you can find them.

So you've met five of my OC wizards. Thorn is basically, hot emo girl who likes vampires. Half inspired by people I know, a quarter inspired by Persona, and another quarter inspired by the lead singer from the Hex Girls who shares the same name. Jennifer Hale singing…nerdgasm.

Blake is the guy with the status punches. So far you've seen blizzard knuckle, which does exactly what it says. It makes things cold. Then there's sleep knuckle. Also explanatory. Same for Wind, though the wind knuckle is very strong.

Titan is a one man band. You may think, how is a guy like that a mage? Here's an answer that fellow Doctor Who fans will get: Pilot Fish. That's his power.

As for Xanatos, badass incarnate. Totally raped Victor into the wall.

Anyhow, I get to go back to Kerrich! Finally! Time for him to learn some magic, and fail miserably.

Keelah Se'lai,

The Proud Quarian,

Terran34


	5. The Power of Magic

Time for some Kerrich awesomeness! I want to get right to it, so I'm making this AN short.

* * *

"Where do you want it, Kerrich?" Mirajane asks me curiously, holding what looks like one of those weird stamp things they use in offices. I glance cluelessly at it, wondering what in God's name she's talking about.

"Want what? What is that?" I ask stupidly. Fortunately, she doesn't give me a WTF face like I've started getting used to. She just giggles and shows me the underside of the stamp thing. Peering at it, I can see the weird Fairy Tail symbol that was on the outside of the guild. She wants to put that on me somewhere? Is it permanent?

Fuck it. For all I know, I'm never going to get back home, so I might as well start acclimatizing to this world. So where would be the best place to get a tattoo? I could be like Gajeel and Natsu, and get it on my shoulder. Lucy had it on her hand, so I could get it there too, but I kinda want to be unique about where I put in. Ha, I should put it on my eye. Check out my retro eye-patch! Yeah…no. Okay, Mirajane is watching me think patiently, so I should probably decide right about now.

"Place it on my heart," I tell her. I put on a confident smirk, thinking that no one had it put there. Mirajane raises an eyebrow, put she looks more impressed rather than skeptical.

"Ooh, that's deep. Now you can say that Fairy Tail is the closest thing to your heart!" she exclaimed, her hands already moving. Uh…right. That's totally what I was going for. I totally wasn't just trying to be unique. Yeah.

I can feel my cheeks heating up as the fairly attractive bartender lifts up my shirt to expose the area around my heart. God, I can feel her hands on my skin…and now I sound like a pervert in my mind. I avert my gaze and start pretending that I'm back home getting a haircut from my mother. That helps slightly.

That's when Mirajane presses the stamp down on my skin. I wince, feeling a slight burning sensation where the stamp touches my skin. It's only there for a second though, and she quickly removes it. Grabbing the hem of my shirt, I hold it up just a bit longer so I can inspect the results. Sure enough, there was the Fairy Tail emblem emblazoned on my heart, colored brown like my hair. I kinda like it.

"There we go! Now you're one of us!" Mirajane tells me happily, putting a bright smile. I laugh nervously and scratch the back of my head. I still don't know if joining here was a good idea, but there's not much I can do about it now.

"Right. But I can't do jobs or anything. I don't know any magic," I admit to her. Mirajane's smile turns reassuring, although I'm not cheered up at all. I'm still amazed that magic even exists, but I'm not even willing to consider that I can learn some. Even though Makarov told me that I have magic inside of me, it just sounds way too freaking surreal to be true. This is like something out of…heh…a fairy tale. A nerd with no real skills gets transported to a new world and somehow learns super powerful magic. Yeah right.

"Don't worry, it'll come to you eventually. For now, why don't you walk around and get to know the other members of the guild? You may find that one of them knows a magic that interests you enough to learn it," Mirajane suggests to me.

"Why would that…actually that's a good idea," I start to argue, then realize that she's right. I'm not really a social guy by any means, but if I'm going to be living here, then I might as well get to know everyone. I guess I'll start by talking to people that I already know.

"Come talk to me if you need any more help!" Mirajane offers as I get to my feet. As it is still early in the day, the guild is nearly full with people laughing and talking. Fortunately, after the bar fight, everyone is unwilling to fight further and had all worked together to replace the broken tables and chairs.

Now, where is Lucy? I know her, and she seems friendly enough, so I might as well start with her. Come on you blonde beauty, where the fuck…ah, now I see her. I can see her bright blonde hair sitting with Natsu and Gray over near the bar.

"Kerrich! Good to see you!" Lucy calls to me in a friendly manner as I approach. I nod in response, and then my jaw drops as I see what Natsu chose as his meal for the morning.

The pink haired guy has a plate of wood on it, which is burning fiercely with yellow orange flames. That's not the best part. Natsu is…eating the flames. What the fuck?! First Gajeel can nahm on metal like it's the most natural thing in the world, and now Natsu can eat flames? I decide to bring this to light.

"Uh…why are you eating flames?!" I exclaim, though I do sit down next to Gray, who is sitting across from Lucy and Natsu. For some reason though, he's wearing practically nothing aside from a pair of shorts.

"Huh?" Natsu replies through a mouthful of flame…yeah I'm never going to get used to seeing that. Ever. I'm about to repeat my question when another voice responds for me.

"Natsu's a dragonslayer! They can restore their stamina and magic power by eating their respective elements!" says the small blue cat that I had noticed earlier today. I blink, staring at the cat with wide eyes. "What?"

"It…TALKS?!" I exclaim, and because I'm so shocked, I forget to hold myself up. Therefore I fall backwards off the bench and hit the floor, much to Lucy and Gray's amusement.

"How rude! Natsu…this oddly dressed guy is being mean to me!" the cat complains. Natsu just takes another bite of flames and shoves a fish at the cat, who squeals happily and starts munching on it contentedly.

"Oddly dressed? Listen here you…" I react defensively, climbing back up onto the bench. "I'll have you know this is standard fashion where I come from."

The cat is too busy munching on its fish to respond to me properly, and instead makes weird grunting sounds through its mouthful. Lucy wrinkles her brow in disgust.

"Happy, don't talk with your mouth full," Lucy admonishes the cat, who seems to ignore her. So what, the weird talking blue cat is named Happy? What the hell is wrong with this world…oh wait! EVERYTHING!

"Anyhow, what I wanted to talk about was you guys' magic," I finally say, getting over the insane world that I'm now inhabiting. That draws their attention, and they gaze at me waiting for me to continue.

"So Natsu, you use fire as your magic?" I try to clarify. Natsu chews on his fire for a few seconds, and then he swallows and starts talking.

"Yeah! I burn everything to ashes!" he responds eagerly, and he holds up his finger. His finger ignites, sending powerful flames into the air. That's impressive. If I learn magic flames, I could go home and never be cold again! Not to mention I'd be a powerhouse. Maybe then I'd join the army and become a secret weapon.

"Lucy, what do you use?" I turn my attention next to the blonde girl. Lucy fishes somewhere below the table and then pulls up a ring of strange looking keys colored gold and silver, with different exotic designs carved onto each one.

"Celestial Magic! I can call on spirits from another world using these keys. They help me battle!" Lucy explains to me. I think about that for a moment, and then I decide that Celestial Magic isn't really for me. I mean, I'm a klutz, and if I had to fight relying upon my ability to hold onto tiny ass keys, I'd be screwed in an instant.

"Gray, what about you?" I turn to the last member of the table, who looks like he'd only just started paying attention to the conversation.

"Don't know why it matters, but I use ice magic," Gray replies shortly to me. Huh. Don't know what his problem is. But to sum it up, I'm sitting at a table with people who use magic that I'm familiar with. Who knows how many books I've read where the hero can manipulate fire or ice. Celestial magic is a new thing, but like I said before, it doesn't sound like it will be something I'd like to use. Actually, I think I'll hold off on trying to learn any of these magics, because they are too standard for my tastes.

Even as I'm thinking, my stomach chooses that moment to growl, rather loudly I might add. I haven't had anything to eat since my arrival in this world, and I'm starving, to say the least. It comes as a surprise to me that I haven't noticed it before now. Everyone at the table stares at me pointedly.

"What can I say? I haven't eaten for a day and a half," I say with a shrug. Then Happy chooses that moment to walk over the table towards me, holding a fish.

"If you're hungry, you can have one of my fish!" the cat offers to me, holding up the little fish. I nod and take the fish, biting into it without thinking.

I chew for less than a second before I realize that something is very wrong with what I'm eating. I immediately spit out the piece of fish, much to Happy's shock and horror.

"Ugh! Is this raw?!" I demand, wiping at my lips in a vain attempt to rid my mouth of that awful taste.

"Aye!" was Happy's helpful response. Natsu, Gray, and Lucy laugh at my plight as I start wiping off my tongue.

"Who the hell eats raw fish!?" I continue to complain. Damn blue cat feeding me poison…that's the last time I take food from a cat!

"I do! Raw fish taste the best! And you wasted a bite!" Happy squeals, snatching back the fish he had offered to me. I didn't even try to hold onto it. You can have it, you damn cat!

"I don't suppose there's any real food for me to eat here?" I address this question to the humans sitting at the table. I won't forget this, Happy…

"Well, there is, but it's not free," Lucy admits to me. I sigh and pull out my wallet from my pocket. I have some money here, but I'm not sure if it will be enough. I also have my cell phone. Maybe I can try trading that.

"Huh? Those don't look like jewels," Gray remarks in confusion when I pull out a five dollar bill. I blink and gaze back at the ice wizard. Then I slam my fist onto the table once I realize my mistake.

"Stupid stupid! Why would I think that the currency where I'm from would work here?!" I berated myself, putting the bills back in my wallet, which is now pretty much useless. So I'm in a whole new world, in a ridiculous guild, without any money to sustain myself.

"That's right! You're not from Fiore, are you?" Lucy points out to the other wizards at the table. They glance at me in shock. Obviously no one other than Lucy knew where I was from.

"That shouldn't matter. Jewels are the currency no matter where you go, right?" Gray corrects the blonde wizard. Lucy blinks, and then they're all staring at me. Well…fuck. How the hell do I explain my way out of this one without giving myself away? Or lying, for that part.

"Well…I…" I stammer. Thankfully, Lucy comes to my rescue.

"I guess Kennesaw is farther away than I thought, right Kerrich?" she reasons. That seems to placate Gray and Natsu, thankfully enough.

"Yeah. That's right. It's extremely far away. But that doesn't help me get anything to eat," I wisely decide to change the subject to prevent them dwelling on my previous residence.

I sigh in relief as the group starts conversing with one another about random subjects. At one point, Happy starts teasing Lucy with deadpan remarks, which the blonde grew hilariously enraged about. Most of them concern the unwritten rules of talking with girls. Yeah, I know them by heart, mostly because if I ever violated one, I'd end up on the receiving end of one of Priscilla's famous punches. Don't ask about a girl's age, their weight, or their eating habits. Very bad idea. Happy made the bad decision of remarking on the amount of food that Lucy decided to order. What an idiot.

Of course, thinking about Priscilla makes me depressed. I rest my cheek on my hand and fall silent, letting the other wizards talk amongst themselves. I should be talking to the other wizards, but right now I'm just not feeling it. I'm hungry and depressed. Not a good combination.

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice this girl walking towards us. I can't tell how old she is, but if I have to guess, I'll say she's about my age, give or take a year or two. She has short blue hair that was surprisingly untidy, considering the fact that she was a girl. Aaaand again with the fucking hair colors. Her hair is so blue, I could dunk her into the ocean and you wouldn't be able to fucking see it. Heh, now I'm imagining her wearing a wet shirt. Hawwwt.

She gets closer, and I can tell that she's holding a…wait what the fuck? I kid you not; she is holding a large cake that is shaped like Gray. I mean, with damn near perfect detail, considering it's a cake. I…I don't even.

"Uhh…Gray…" I decide to warn the ice wizard before the girl gets closer. Gray, who is currently arguing with Natsu about who's going to choose the next job, cuts off in the middle of his sentence and looks at me.

"Huh?" he says, turning his head to look at me. I don't reply verbally, and instead I discreetly point towards the approaching girl. Gray turns and ends up gazing directly into the girl's eyes as she reaches us. The ice wizard yelps in surprise and…what looks like embarrassment, if the slight tinge of red on his cheeks was anything to go by. "J…Juvia?"

"Gray! Juvia made this for you. She was hoping you would accept it," the girl tells the ice wizard, fluttering her eyelashes and blushing slightly. So…this girl has a crush bordering on obsession towards Gray. And…wait, Gray called her Juvia, and yet the girl is talking about this Juvia like she is a separate person. So who was Juvi…wait…does she talk about herself in the third person? Seriously? How egotistical is that? Or is it just a gimmick she has? This world makes no sense.

"Th...That's okay, I'm not really hungry right now," Gray declines the offer as politely as he can. Aha, points to Gray for turning down…wait a minute, who am I kidding? If I had a babe like that baking cakes for me, I think I'd keep her. Gray, are you insane?! FUCKING TAKE IT!

Gray gets more flustered when he sees the pitiful, puppy dog eyes that Juvia is not giving him.

"But…but Juvia spent all night making it…" Juvia murmurs in disappointment, practically crying. I think about nudging Gray to make him do it, but then I decided against it. If he wants to be forever alone, then it's his choice. Well, I could be a good friend and hook them up…gah what do I…

"Uh…yeah I just remembered I hadn't eaten breakfast this morning! Thanks Juvia," Gray apparently can't resist that look, so takes the cake from Juvia and sets it on the table. The blue-haired girl then squeals ecstatically, her face lighting up with radiant happiness. Goddamn, Gray, you lucky bastard. Then again…although I do like it when girls are sweet, I personally prefer a girl who can kick my ass. Like Priscilla. Damn it, I can't stop thinking about her.

Juvia plops down on the bench next to Gray and hands him a fork, which he accepts nervously. She then watches as he takes the first bite, her face resting in her hands.

Lucy, Natsu, and Happy are busy stifling their laughter, albeit with difficulty. I don't see why it's funny, unless you counted that Gray is as red as a beet. Despite my jealously that he had such an attractive girl head over heels for him, it made me smile to see somebody enjoying life. At least _they _can. At least your significant other wasn't slaughtered by a freak storm from hell.

"Psst…guys. I think we should move," I whisper under my breath to Lucy, Natsu, and Happy. Natsu and Happy look confused, but Lucy gets the picture, so she and I stand up first. I see Juvia glancing at me, so I meet her gaze. She nods once appreciatively, and then she returns her gaze back to Gray. You're welcome, Juvia. The name's Kerrich: the ultimate wingman.

We relocate to another table, where Erza is sitting at a table next to Cana's table. Cana, as usual, is drinking, while Erza is eating a meal delicately. The armored wizard looks up as we join her, looking rather surprised.

"Natsu? Lucy? And…" Erza questions, but as she looks at me, she trails off. I try to put on my most friendly smile and offer my hand to her.

"My name is Kerrich. Nice to meet you," I introduce myself. She smiles at my introduction and takes my hand, shaking it. My eyes bug out and I have to suppress a yelp. She has one hell of a strong grip! Ow, let me go!

When Erza finally lets my hand go, I look down to see a red imprint of her hand on my skin. Well shit! Why are all the women in this guild like…scary strong? I rub my hand gingerly, while Lucy and Natsu laugh quietly at my expense.

"Erza...that's mean! Why wasn't I mentioned?" Happy complains, but he's completely ignored. HA! Suck it you damn cat!

"You are the newest member of the guild? I look forward to seeing you perform," Erza responds in what she probably assumes is a friendly tone. However, it sounds like she is expecting me to totally fail. That's it. This woman scares me.

"Well, I don't exactly know any magic yet," I have to admit to her. She cocks her head curiously at me, but before she can respond, I continue. "Speaking of which, what magic do you use, Erza?"

"My magic? I call my magic The Knight. I can change my armor and weapon at will to whatever I please," Erza explains to me. I just gaze dumbly at her. If that's true, then she can equip a sword, and a spear, and maybe even a rifle. That's…damn. I can't even compare to something like that.

"Whoa! If you can use any weapon whenever you want, then you'd have to be trained in the use of the weapons you change to, right?" I try to clarify.

"And what of it?" Erza replies, taking another bite of the meal in front of her. Well, way to be modest, Erza.

"Damn. I can't even hope to compare to something like that. You're pretty amazing, Erza, I compliment her. Check out how suave I can be! Look at that, I got her to blush! I'm Kerrich everyone, the ultimate ladies man!

"Y…yeah," Erza stammers, returning her attention to her food. Anyhow, all joking aside, I can't even hope to use that kind of magic. First off, I can only fight with my fists. I wouldn't be able to learn and memorize all the different fighting styles required by the other weapons.

"No kidding! You should have seen Erza the last time I went with her. They didn't stand a chance!" Lucy informs me, further embarrassing the armored wizard.

"Why did you all come to join me?" Erza decides to change the subject away from her amazing magic. That was an easy one. I wouldn't be surprised if the two were making out by now.

"Because Gray's getting a little action, that's why," I respond with a grin on my face. Erza blinks, obviously confused. Lucy helpfully pointed towards Gray and Juvia.

Unfortunately, they were not making out. However, Gray was laughing at something Juvia had said, while the blue-haired girl was waving her hands around trying to clarify. Finally, Juvia got frustrated and forced a bite of cake into Gray's mouth, effectively silencing his laughter. Gray got annoyed, and not longer after Juvia was celebrating her success, he retaliated by doing the same to her. She hadn't been expecting it, and thus turned a light pink. Now Gray was laughing harder at his success.

"It's good to see them having fun," Erza remarks with a smile, returning to her own meal. I chuckle at that. That's one way of putting it.

"Look's like Gray's got a girlfriend!" Lucy jokes. That one statement was enough to send Natsu into a laughing fit.

"Like that would ever happen! He's too oblivious!" Natsu commented between laughs. Lucy gave him a sideways look.

"Like you're one to talk," she replied wryly at him. Natsu stopped laughing and looked at Lucy in confusion.

"Wh...what?" the dragonslayer asked, completely clueless. I had to laugh at that one. I could see what was going on there.

Anyhow, as much as I enjoy sticking around with these weirdoes, I still have to find out what magic I want to learn. I stand up form the bench, drawing their attention.

"Well, if you'll excuse me, I still have to find out what other kinds of magic there are," I tell them.

"Good luck. I hope you find one you like," Lucy bids me. Well, that's kind of her. I still doubt I can even learn magic in the first place.

"Yeah, go and get strong, and then I'll take you on!" Natsu declares rather loudly. I cringe and back away slowly. Yeah, like I'll be stupid enough to take on a dragonslayer. If Natsu is anything like Gajeel, who had to be a dragonslayer too since he can eat iron, then I won't even stand a chance. I SAW what Gajeel could do, and I assume that Natsu is just as strong, if not stronger

"Yeah…sounds like fun," I stammer, and then I walk over to Cana's table. I don't know if she notices me, since she's drinking out of a fucking barrel, but I do want to ask what kind of magic she uses. Makarov said she uses "Card Magic," but what the fuck is that, and can I learn it?

"Hey, Cana, can I…" I begin, but she sets her barrel down with a slam and glares at me before I can even finish my statement.

"Huh?! You got a problem, bud?!" she demands rather angrily. I take a step back, raising my hands in surrender. I felt on of her punches earlier today, and I really didn't want to feel another, since I just know she'd attack my face.

"Sheesh, what is it with Fairy Tail and its women wanting to murder me?" I joke weakly. That was probably a stupid idea, seeing as she's pissed already. Note to self, don't get in between Cana and her drinking.

"If you've got something to say, then siddown already and say it!" Cana demands. She reclines back in her seat and rests her elbow on the top of the barrel. So what, she's an alcoholic with style? Heh. I think it wouldn't be a good idea to just walk away after that, so I do as she suggests and sit next to her. It takes all of my self-control not to stare. At what, you ask? Do I have to spell it out?

"I was just curious about your magic." I gaze at her, trying to gauge her reaction. She pours some of the liquid in the barrel into a cup, since I'm still sticking around. She glares at me impatiently. I realize she wants me to clarify. "The master said you use Card Magic, but what does that mean?"

"My magic does whatever. I want the cards to burn, and then they burn. I want them to explode, and then they explode," Cana attempts to explain. I blink, trying to understand her vague description. So she can toss cards at people and they do whatever she wants them to? That's incredible. That sounds like it's worth checking out.

"Is…that all they do?" I press. I want to know more, Cana, so tell me! The girl sighs, but thankfully it's not an irritated sigh. Cana reaches into a bag that is hanging at her side and pulls out a deck of cards. The design on the back of the cards is unfamiliar, but when she starts placing some of the cards down, I recognize the designs on the fronts instantly. I grab one quickly and stare at it, my eyes tracing over the familiar symbol.

"No way! You fight with tarot cards? That's so awesome!" I exclaim in shock and happiness. The card on my hand is emblazoned with the symbol of the Temperance Arcana, one of the twenty-two Major Arcana. Now I feel like making a Persona reference. If I learned this magic, I'd get such a kick out of using the Arcana to fight. I mean, come on, I love the Persona games. I wouldn't be able to resist making a reference every time I cast a spell. That's assuming I can even use magic, that is.

"Gimme that back," Cana snapped, snatching the card out of my hand, though I can see she is slightly embarrassed at my praise. "No, exploding and burning is not all these cards can do. They have different effects depending on what combination I draw them in. I can even throw them and have them cut into my enemy."

I'm liking the sound of this magic more and more. I think I'll ask Cana if she can teach me how to use it.

"Can one learn to use this magic?" I finally decide to ask her, though I prepare to protect myself if my question somehow pisses her off. She just gives me this dumbfounded look.

"You want to learn Card Magic?" Cana asks blankly. Well, I guess my way of asking wasn't that subtle, but that about sums it up, yeah. It's the only magic I've heard about that sounds like I'd have fun using it. So I go ahead and give her a nod. "Huh. Well that's the first time anyone's asked to learn from me."

"Well, there's a first time for everything, isn't there?" I respond smoothly, while inwardly groaning. I can't believe I just said that. Only the most used line in existence, right up there next to "the best thing since sliced bread."

"Guess we should get going then," Cana says, setting her drink down. I look up at her, surprised by her haste.

"What, now? I still haven't had anything to eat since this morning!" My stomach growls a second after that, which causes Cana to laugh. She sighs and looks towards Mirajane, who is serving drinks to Macao and Wakaba.

"I guess I'll treat you then. But you better pay me back later!" the girl decides, accenting her last statement with an evil glare. Gah, scary women in this guild. However, I am grateful that she's helping me out. Usually I eat three meals a day, so I'm STARVING.

I have no idea how I'm going to pay her back, though.

* * *

After the meal, Cana and I leave the guildhall, heading for a wide-open area suitable for training. It's nice and warm outside, but I'm sure that if training your mind is as hard as training your body, I'll be cursing the heat before long.

Unfortunately, people stared as I left the guild. Maybe they were surprised that I managed to get Cana away from her drinks, especially after the spectacle earlier today. Or maybe they were jealous that I have such a hot teacher. Maybe none of those are true, since I didn't get to hear what they were saying.

"We're going to head to the back of the guild. There, we can practice without anyone getting in our way," Cana explains while we walk around the side of the guildhall. That makes sense, I guess. I'm still not sure I can use magic, but it's still worth trying, at least. I won't feel right with myself if I find my way home without at least trying to learn magic. Or maybe I'm actually in a coma and having a really strange delusion. Go figure.

Cana leads me to a small grassy field with a tree in the center just behind the guild, where the ground is strangely textured. The grass layer is oddly wavy, as if someone damaged the ground in the past and grass grew over what was left. Then again, if I think about it, that's not that farfetched. If bar fights like the one earlier today happen all the time, then it's not surprising that there is some damage out back.

"Now, if you want to learn magic, you're first going to need to know how to tap into the magic power inside of you," Cana begins. I blink, and then I sigh. I'm screwed already. I don't care what Makarov says. I don't have magic power. I don't think they know how many times I used to try to use magic back in my world, just for fun. No matter how I focused, I couldn't even bend a spoon. I don't have magic.

Cana hands me one of her cards. I take it gingerly, not knowing what exactly it takes to set one of these off. It's smooth and glossy, like amber. What a strange texture for a card. I look at the front to see the symbol for the Strength Arcana imprinted there. Interesting. I summon Siegfried! Ahaha, no one is going to get that joke but me, so I keep it to myself.

"Once you figure out how to call upon your own magic, that card will glow red. Go ahead and give it a shot," Cana orders. Great, now it's time to look like a total fool.

Before I can start, I notice Makarov watching from the sidelines. When did he get here? Hooray, I get to look like an idiot in front of the guild master.

Well, here goes nothing. I grasp the card in both hands and shut my eyes. I don't know what I'm looking for, so I just try to do the whole meditation thing and empty my mind.

Yeah. Easier said that freaking done. It's impossible to think of nothing. Every time I try to clear my mind, there's always something there that ruins it for me. One time it was a fly landing on my shoulder. Another it was recalling how I transported here. And finally, I thought of my mother and how she was doing. Suffice to say, that card in my hands doesn't do shit.

"God, this is frustrating!" I complain, opening my eyes. Cana, who was watching me the whole time, just starts laughing.

"Give yourself some credit. You're handling the frustration better than I did!" she attempts to reassure me.

"Yeah? How did you handle it?" I shoot back at her, glaring daggers at the damn card in my hand. Fuck you, Siegfried.

"By breaking damn near every piece of furniture in the hall," Cana quips without missing a beat. Pfft, well there goes my concentration. I can't help but laugh at her story.

"That does sound like you, seeing as how you broke the table I was sitting at earlier today." My response causes her to throw a card at me, which hit me in the head. Thankfully, she hadn't put any magic behind that, or I would be dead.

"Well you were asking for it. Now, keep trying. Every wizard has some sort of 'trigger.' When it's pulled, the magic flows forth," Cana replies, getting serious again. I nod and return to my meditation.

Since clearing my mind didn't work, I guess I need to find this trigger. Trigger. What sort of thing would set my nonexistent magic into existence? Uh…go magic! Fly! Up up and away, magic! Dear god, I can't believe I just made that reference without realizing it. Now, where's Mirajane so I can save her for no reason at all? Okay, making Spiderman jokes won't help me call forth any magic.

Maybe it's like the movies, where a near death situation will cause power to flow forth. Or like in that Eragon book, where the hero was under attack by orc wannabes and used magic without realizing it. Have I ever been in a near death situation?

That makes me think of the time I came here, two days ago. That was when I flew up into the fucking sky and ended up here. If I try to recall the feeling I had then, will my magic come forth?

I remember how scared I was when I first saw that hole in the sky. The more frightened I get, the more I curse, and I remember screaming out curse words that day. I was desperate, thinking that I'd never see my friends again. Feeling that again, I concentrated as hard as I could.

"Hey, you got something! A…little…something, but something nonetheless!" Cana alerts me. There goes my concentration. I open my eyes and look at the card, just in time to see an extremely faint red glow fading away from its surface. My eyes went wide in shock. I… "See? You do have magic!"

No fucking way. I have magic. This has to be the strangest and yet most awesome moment in my entire life. I, a normal computer nerd from college, have magic power. My confidence goes soaring into the heavens.

"What was your trigger?" Cana asks. I freeze. How do I answer that question without lying? I can't just tell her that I thought of being transported to this world. I'd probably be locked up in Fiore's equivalent of an asylum.

"Something depressing," I say haltingly. Cana nods understandingly. Then she adopted a thoughtful look.

"Say, I have an idea. Why don't you think of something more depressing? Say, what was that friend of yours…Priscilla?" the girl suggests in a tentative tone.

My eyes shoot wide. Did she just…she did. She just suggested that I use the memory of my dead friend to summon my magic. Who the fuck does she think she is, talking about such a memory like its just an object to be used? Priscilla was, quite frankly, the love of my life ever since I found out what love was, and Cana just ladidah oh you just use her as a tool! You mother fucker. I fucking loved her, and you just…I have never been angrier in my life. How inconsiderate can you get?! You know what? Fuck this, and fuck you Cana. I'm going to tell you exactly what I think of you.

"WHY THE FUCK DID YOU HAVE TO BRING HER UP!" I shout at the top of my lungs, taking her and Makarov aback by the ferocity of my yell. I yelled wordlessly and then I hurl the card away from me with all of my might. I'm done with this…

The second the card left my hand, it starts glowing red, brighter than even the sun in the sky at this point. I watch it fly through the air in shock. The card sails towards the tree in the center of the field. Then, it collided.

The card is suddenly torn to pieces by a colossal explosion that erupts from the center of the front of the card. The blast of fire expands and incinerates the tree into dust, while at the same time burning the grass around it and charring the earth itself. Smaller explosions chain off of the initial one, each carving small craters out of the earth.

All I can do is stare with an open mouth at the destruction wrought merely by tossing a card away. Was…that me? Did me flipping a shit actually cause that kind of explosion? I think there's no other way to describe my state of mind other than _completely mindfucked._

Cana and Makarov are in similar states of shock. Cana drops the cards she's holding to the ground, her jaw open and her body shaking at the incredible explosion that I may or may not have caused. Makarov actually stands up and starts muttering under his breath while he paces past the destruction.

That's when exhaustion hits me like a freight train. One second I'm standing up in shock, gazing at my insane feat, and then all of my energy is sucked out of me before I could even comprehend what happened. I groan and hit the ground, losing consciousness almost instantly after doing so.

* * *

_I'm standing in the campus green, watching a game of Frisbee take place. I clap my hands and cheer when I see a particularly skills maneuver executed by one of the players. Our team was good._

_I'm only blissfully ignorant for another moment before I realize where I am and what I'm doing. What the hell? Why am I back in the green? This is…_

_Why am I back in my world? I look around to see other people clustered around me, many of whom I recognized from class. I'm now clueless._

_I pick my way through the crowd until I see the path that leads back up to my dorm. Unlike my last dream, when I had been in my chemistry classroom, this time I have control. I'm heading back to my dorm room._

_I start running, and I'm shocked to realize that I'm extremely fast. I'm a computer nerd, so how the hell can I run this damn fast? Oh well, it's a dream, so let's just run with it. Haha, run with it. I'm so clever._

_I sprint my way through the crowd that is no doubt on their way to and from class. I'm getting tired from this running, but at a rate far slower than someone like me should experience._

_It's not long until I stand in front of my dorm building. This is the place where my entire life turned upside down. Here, I was hanging onto that bench while the hole in the sky sucked me into oblivion._

_I don't know what I'm expecting to find. I can't get inside the building, because you need a room key to open the lock, and I have nothing with me except my clothes. Then again, this is a dream, so I guess I can do whatever I want. I walk towards the door, wondering if I'd make like a ghost and walk right through it._

_Surprisingly enough, that's exactly what happened. I walk right through the door like it doesn't even exist. Wow, I have the strangest dreams. I'm a ghost, haha. _

_I find myself retracing the steps to my dorm room just like I used to when I actually lived here. I still find it hard to believe that a dream is the only way for me to see this place ever again._

_There is another locked door in my way, but I just walk through it like I did the first one. It doesn't hurt or anything to walk through them. My vision just goes dark for a split second, and then I'm on the other side. It's like I'm walking in a separate dimension superimposed upon the real world, with the images from the real world bleeding through like sharpie through paper._

_I turn to the right, walking right past my old roommate as I did so. I turn my head to follow him, but he doesn't acknowledge my presence, or even look at me. I'd come to accept that. I wouldn't have another tantrum like I did in my last dream._

_That reminds me. If this is a dream, then why is it so lucid? Granted, I've always had vivid dreams for my entire life, but it's only recently that I've been able to directly influence the events going on in the dream. Actually, now that I think about it, they've been incredibly lucid ever since I arrived in that other world. Both dreams were here in my world. Maybe there's a connection there._

_I walk directly through the door of my old dorm. Not much has changed really, since I've only been gone for two days. I feel like visiting my room, so I walk through the wall._

_Wait, who the fuck is that? There's this guy sitting on my bed. I've never seen him before in my life, so what the hell is he doing in my room? There's no way the housing department would have given my room to someone else yet. It's only been two days. That's not even long enough for me to be considered officially missing. It's still my room technically._

"_Don't know who this Kerrich guy was, but he sure had a wacked out decoration scheme," the guy says to himself, gazing at my posters and figurines that still decorated the place. Oh you did not just insult my posters, you son of a bitch. Those are perfectly normal posters. One of them is of Spiderman wearing the black suit, because it's epic, while still another is a picture of Chikane from Kannazuki no Miko. Both amazing shows. As for my figurines, they are Bleach characters mostly, primarily Ulquiorra, because he's a boss._

"_He should take this shit down and put up some real posters, like football," the guy continued. That does it._

"_GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY ROOM, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" I scream at the guy at the top of my lungs, and then I slam my fist into the wall just next to his head, though I don't really expect it to land._

_Shockingly, my fist did impact with the wall. Not only that, the wall cracked and ruptured where my fist hit, leaving a fist-sized hole in the center of a small crater. The guy who was insulting my room flips out when he sees the hole. He lets out a high-pitched yelp and throws himself against the wall opposite the hole, gazing at it with wide, frightened eyes._

_I'm confused. This is a dream, so how can I affect the outside world if I'm in the role of an observer? A better question is why I'm so strong. If I were to punch the wall in real life, I would break my hand. In this dream, however, I broke the damn wall!_

_I should really stop trying to analyze things and just take it in stride. If this is a dream and there are no lasting consequences for my actions, then I'm going to torment the hell out of this guy._

_I let an evil grin cross my face. So, how to make this guy fear for his life? If I can affect the world in the dream without anyone seeing me, maybe I could…aha._

"_You think you an just waltz right into my room not even two days after I leave, and then start acting like it's yours? Get real!" I snap at the guy, and then I swing my fist straight towards his cowering face._

_My fist halts right in front of his face. I look down, letting out a sigh. I haven't degraded so far that I'll kill a guy just for being different than me. I'm sure my punch would kill him, seeing a simple hit to the wall nearly caved it in. I'm an asshole, yeah, but I'm not a killer. _

_The guy finally loses his nerve and runs out of my room screaming, walking right through me in the process. I turn and watch him go. I'm feeling slightly disgusted with myself. Why would I even consider taking a life? Just because I won't get punished for it doesn't mean it's right._

_I'm starting to think that my place isn't in this world anymore. The world moved on without Priscilla and I, even though it had only been two days. No matter how important I thought I was, life would continue on. That's how it goes. I'm sure that I will soon be nothing more than a memory to these people._

_My eyes tear up at that thought, but I refuse to let myself cry. I will never cry, no matter what. I again pound the wall, resting my head against it. The wall cracks under the impact, but I don't care. _

_For my entire life, I'd always had this feeling that I didn't belong. I was always ignored by society. My rights were always treated as though they were inconsequential. Nobody understood me or even cared enough to get to know me, other than Priscilla. She was the only reason I was able to keep going, because I know she'd be there to greet me with a smile, and punch the depression out of me again._

_Now that I think about it, that hole in the sky may have saved my life. If I hadn't been sucked into the air and transported, I most likely would have ended my life upon discovering Priscilla's death. Now that I'm in Fiore, I have a new reason to live. I want to get stronger. I want to surpass Priscilla, so that I can reassure her spirit that I've put her training to good use._

_The Fairy Tail guild treats me well. I'm sure I'll be able to move on, given enough time._

_Almost as though the dream world is responding to my thoughts, my dorm room swirls away into darkness, leaving me in complete blackness. This doesn't last long, and soon a new environment appears._

_To my shock, I'm standing in the exact clearing where I had fallen unconscious in the first place. I can see the wreckage caused by my sudden outburst of magic. Cana is standing by…wait a minute, is that my body? What the hell?_

_It's true. My body is lying down on the ground where I landed. I'm standing right here watching Cana try and rouse me. What the fuck is this, and out of body experience? This can't be a normal dream. Not once have I ever seen myself in a dream. For all I know, this was actually happening right now._

"_Kerrich! Please wake up!" Cana is begging me, shaking my body and trying to rouse me. Makarov looks troubled, and he too stands over me. I'm getting unnerved standing here watching myself, so I decide to walk over to my body._

_I reach down and touch myself, which sounds really wrong if your mind is in the gutter, but seriously, I'm touching my hand to my body's arm. In the exact instant that my hand touches my skin, my vision goes black._

"_He'll be fine, Cana. He merely expended…"_

* * *

"…too much magic power before he knew how to control it," Makarov reassured Cana. I let out a small groan and open my eyes. I realize that I can remember every exact detail of the dream I just had. This is definitely odd. I've never had dreams that vivid before. Perhaps it's a different type of magic that I've never heard of. Maybe I should ask about it. Then again, how would I explain it? Wait a minute, isn't there a word for projecting your spirit out of your physical body?

"Thank goodness you're awake," Cana expresses with a small smile. I chuckle weakly and attempt to climb to my feet. She grabs me by the arm and hoists me up. That hurts! It feels like she almost ripped my arm out of its socket.

"Ow! Gently, Cana," I complain, rubbing the offending area. Cana laughs apologetically and brushes the dust off of me. I take a moment to cast my gaze across the destruction wreaked upon the field by my outburst.

"I think you overdid it, Kerrich," she comments, following my gaze. I can't help but chuckle at that. She's totally right. Now that I've accepted the fact I have magic, now I just want to know how strong it is. If that blast was all of the magic power in my body exploding at once, then I'm like a god. Epic.

"Indeed. That's something I'd expect from Natsu or Gray, but not from you," Makarov puts in his input. That amuses Cana, but I'm not sure I get it. I haven't seen Natsu or Gray use their magic yet, so I don't know how destructive they are.

"Yeah…I didn't know I could do something like that. I guess your little trigger idea worked," I reply, an edge creeping into my voice despite how hard I tried o prevent that. Cana's face falls, and Makarov sighs and turns the other way.

"I…I'm sorry, Kerrich. I was…just trying to help…" she apologizes to me. I rest a hand on her shoulder reassuringly, giving her a smile.

"I may not like it, but it worked. Apology accepted," I respond in what I hoped was a friendly tone. Cana brushes off my hand and groans.

"Goddammit, now I need a drink!" she growls.

"When _don't _you need a drink?" I remark humorously. I notice the popping vein in her forehead too late to dodge. Pain bursts in my face as Cana slams her fist into my nose once more. I express my pain and nurse my nose, but there's a smile on my face.

"Totally…worth it." My response is enough to get Cana to laugh despite herself. She starts guiding me back inside.

"Come on. You probably don't have any magic power left after that, so we'll keep practicing after you've had something to eat," she explains to me. I'm confused.

"What? Didn't I just…" I begin, but then my stomach growls. The fuck? I literally ate not that long ago. Wait, is this like DragonBall, where I have no power if I haven't eaten? Aha, check this out I'm fucking Goku.

"Come on and eat, Ker. I don't intend to let you rest for long," Cana starts pushing me roughly. Thankfully, I'm only feeling hungry now, so her shoves don't hurt me. I laugh at her overzealousness and let her lead me into the building.

* * *

Cana is kind enough to treat me to another meal, but she keeps insisting she's going to exact some favor or another sometime in the future. Hell, once I find a way to get money in this world, I'll just buy her a drink or something, and then I'll bet she'll shut up.

Once inside, I look around to see what everyone is doing. Gray was standing at the bulletin board with Juvia. I'm guessing that requests for help and such are posted there, so Gray and Juvia must intend to go on a job together.

Natsu is talking to this younger girl, maybe around middle school age, who is looking rather flushed. Natsu has a smug look on his face, so I assume that he's teasing her. And…what the hell? Happy is standing next to another cat that looks very similar to him, only white and clearly female if its attire was anything to go off of. The blue cat is holding a fish, but the white cat is turning her nose up at it. Damn, rejected.

Ha, I love how I'm considering relations between talking cats as being normal. Another blue haired girl, accompanied by two skinny men who are grappling with one another for some reason, is talking to Gajeel. The wizard looks irritated by the attention, but he isn't pushing her away. That shocks me. Gajeel practically called me a weakling and a loser to my face, and yet here he is talking to this tiny little girl like…oh. I see. Heh. Not that his life was any of my business. Fuck him.

Cana, halfway during the meal, gets up and leaves, telling me she has to talk to Mirajane for a moment. That's fine, at least now I can eat without being scared for my life. Then again, I should cut Cana some slack. She's easier to eat with than Erza, for instance.

Actually, this works out. Makarov is sitting on top of the bar, reading a book and occasionally glancing out at the members of his guild. This gives me the perfect chance to ask what's currently on my mind.

He sees me approaching and raises his head from his book, fixing me with an intrigued glance. That's right, he was watching when I blew up the training field, so I guess it's only right he'd be curious.

"Master, can I ask you something," I begin tentatively. I don't know if he'll think me completely crazy when I ask, but it's worth a shot.

"Of course! What do you need," Makarov responds. He reaches to his side and lifts a full mug, taking a drink out of it. I sigh. Might as well say it. I won't learn anything by being hesitant.

"Is there any such thing as astral projection magic?" Makarov promptly sprays out the liquid in his mouth in shock, and he sets the mug down with a slam. I blink, confused at his reaction. Did that really warrant such a reaction? Seems rather melodramatic if you ask me.

"Where did you hear of that, Kerrich?" was the master's subsequent question. Crap, I should have figured he'd ask something like that. How to think of a way to reply without lying…well, I've heard of astral projection from several sources, like the movie Insidious, or in one case, a damn crazy girlfriend back in high school, but I needed to say something that sounded convincing.

"I didn't hear it, exactly. I just read a book involving astral projection before, and wondered if there was a magic that focused around it," I completely bullshit my response. I didn't lie, technically. I did read a book with astral projection in it, but my reasons for asking about magic is because of those strange dreams I'm having.

"I see. Well you are right. There is such thing as Astral Projection magic, but it is an incredibly rare magic. It is said that those who master it are the toughest opponents," Makarov explains. Now that has my attention. If these dreams are in fact astral projection, and I can master its use, then I would become crazy powerful. I like that idea. I like that a lot.

"I see. I'd like to learn it, if it's possible." My request causes Makarov to sigh and shake his head. I hope that's a good sigh, and not a "you're an idiot" sigh.

"I don't think you know what you're asking. Magic like that cannot be learned unless you have the gift for it. If you do not, you might as well be trying to reach the moon," the master replies darkly. I gulp at that. I think I have the gift, seeing as I saw my own freaking body less than an hour ago.

"That's just it, sir," I finally decide to let the cat out of the bag and tell him. "I think I have that gift."

His response is to gaze at me blankly. I kinda figured he wouldn't believe me. It is rather unbelievable for some rookie to walk up to you and say, "oh by the way I know the strongest magic ever!" Which is practically what I just did. Maybe this is all for nothing, but because every time I've fallen asleep in this world, my mind has gone drifting into places I've seen before with near perfect accuracy, I think I have something to go on.

"Let me get this straight. You learned about Astral Projection from a book, and you think you have the gift," Makarov finally said.

"Look, I don't expect you to believe me that easily. Just wait until tonight, once everyone is asleep. I'll prove it to you then," I confidently tell him. Makarov sighs again and takes a long swig from the mug at his side.

"Then I will stay awake and wait. Now I think Cana is waiting for you," the master affirmed. I turned my head to see the teen waiting impatiently for me. I bid Makarov goodbye and follow Cana out the door.

Maybe I can learn Card Magic. But if I can learn this Astral Projection Magic, I'll be a hell of a lot stronger than I am right now, and possibly stronger than anyone here. (Or at least I hope so)

Just you wait, Priscilla. I won't let you down.

* * *

Whew, I'm done. Unlike Victor's chapter, this one soared out of me. Kerrich is more fun to write about.

In case you couldn't tell, I'm supporting my favorite "canon" pairings. Gray+Juvia is a fucking given, since they belong together. Same for Gajeel and Levy. That pairing is one of my favorites. I'm wavering between NaLu and NaLi, but I'm leaning more towards Natsu and Lisanna since it's pretty much canon. I don't know what to do with Lucy .

Kerrich won't be pairing with anyone anytime soon. He's still not over Priscilla. But he will get paired, and that pairing is written in stone.

And in case my references confuse you, basically everything in our world exists except for Fairy Tail. In this story, there is no Fairy Tail anime, since it's a separate dimension. So Kerrich blatantly makes references from all the things he loves. Like the Spiderman jokes.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a single review since the last chapter, so I guess I don't need to do any shoutouts. I guess there's just not as much love for Victor as there is for Kerrich.

Oh, and in case none of you have read my profile, allow me to direct you there now, since I now have a blog and a facebook meant just for my fanfics. Look me up if you feel like chatting.

Keelah Se'lai,

The Proud Quarian,

Terran34


	6. The Mutagen Arc

So recently I've been taking to writing my author's note last, after I finish the chapter. The only problem with that is, I have no idea what to put in them after I finish the chapter.

Right. Um…on with the chapter! XD

* * *

Victor's eyes raked over the job board, looking for a job that suited his interest. Orb had not lied. Every single one of the jobs posted here involved combat, but they were all boring to him. They were requests to defeat some bandits, or put down a troublesome dark guild. In other words, nothing but dirty work.

"Taking your time, aren't you?" Blake remarks impatiently, leaning against the board. Victor growls under his breath, but doesn't respond.

None of these jobs looked interesting at all. Victor wanted something challenging. The job shown to him by Orb looked interesting, but it wasn't shown here on the board. Did that mean it wasn't available to him?

"Come on, it's not that hard," the wizard pressed. Victor's eyes flared and he shoved Blake away.

"Shut the hell up already," he snapped. Blake blinked in surprise at the rough reaction, but he didn't' retaliate, instead grinning cheekily.

"Touchy, aren't we? You won't get money if you don't choose jobs," the wizard reminded the dragonslayer in a cocky manner, reclining against the wall leisurely.

"Tch, I know," was the dragonslayer's response. He returned his eyes to the request board, but nothing had changed. He didn't feel like taking any of these jobs.

Behind the two wizards, the party was heating up. Titan had dispensed with the brass instruments and instead had brought out a drum set and a keyboard. The instruments hung suspended in the air, playing themselves at the wizard's will. He was now playing a fast rock tune, with the modified sound of the keyboard giving the song a surreal tone.

Thorn looked like she was enjoying the music a little too much. The men on the dance floor made room for the S-Rank wizard as she danced to her heart's content. Sonja, who was trying to dance as well, grew irritated when all of the men's gazes were attracted to Thorn instead of herself.

Thorn's long raven hair would swing about as she spun around in place. Her hands rested on the front of her hips and she undulated elegantly. Cheers called from the men who were watching her, but they all knew better than to try and approach her.

"Hey, the job board is over here," Blake pointed out with amusement. Victor realized he was staring and turned around, glaring at the smirking Blake.

"You misunderstand, I was looking for Orb," the dragonslayer protested vehemently. Blake wasn't convinced, as indicated by his chuckling. Victor swiped at him halfheartedly, but the wizard leapt away easily. "So…uh…what's her magic, anyway?"

"Good question. I've never actually seen Thorn in action, but I hear she's a sight to behold," Blake responded thoughtfully. Both wizards watched Thorn's suggestive dancing with varying degrees of curiosity on their faces.

Orb could be seen walking past the tables near the dance floor, gazing at a lacrima in his hand with an unreadable expression on his face. The moment he walked into view of the girls on the dance floor, a few of them broke off and approached him eagerly.

"Ah, Orb. As popular with the girls as always. Pisses me off," Blake remarked humorously. Victor responded with little more than a grunt, as his eyes were locked on Thorn's. She entranced him for some reason.

Before the first girl could even finish asking him, Orb turned the other direction and walked away quickly, making an excuse. The girls all sighed in disappointment and returned to the dance floor, where they were outshined by Thorn's dancing.

"Anyone in there?" Blake prodded Victor on the shoulder with a finger, the cheeky grin back on his face. The dragonslayer snapped back to reality and turned an almost unnoticeable shade of red.

"Don't touch me," Victor growled, but Blake just laughed.

"If you wanna pursue her, I hope you like competition. Every guy on that dance floor wants her," the wizard warned, but Victor just swiped at him again to get him to shut up.

Victor sighed. He really should be picking a job. At that moment, he straightened up. He never was one to hesitate when there was something he wanted. That wasn't going to change merely because he was in a guild.

Blake started as the dragonslayer strode down towards the dance floor. The wizard for one shocking moment thought Victor was going to try and get in on Thorn's dance, but then the dragonslayer turned to the right and bypassed the dancing. He was heading towards the door where Orb had taken refuge from his female admirers.

"Wait for me!" Blake called, and he ran down after Victor. The dragonslayer walked fast, so that was easier said than done. The wizard finally caught up to Victor, but the dragonslayer didn't acknowledge him. None of them noticed Thorn watching them leave the room.

The side room where Orb had chosen to hide seemed to be mostly used for storage, if the barrels and crates lining the walls were anything to go by. Orb himself was sitting on a chair near the corner of the room, his nose buried deep in a book. The S-rank wizard looked up once he noticed their arrival.

"Yes, Victor? Is there something I can help you with?" Orb asks politely, shutting his book and crossing his arms. Victor stopped just in front of the wizard, a determined look on his face. Blake stood just behind the dragonslayer, looking confused.

"Yeah actually. You know that job you showed me the other day?" Victor demanded. Orb nodded and raised an eyebrow. The wizard then unhooked a lacrima from his belt and concentrated. The lacrima flashed once, and then the job in question floated into Orb's hands.

"You mean this job? What about it?" the wizard replied, never once losing that polite tone. Victor abruptly snatched the job out of Orb's hands and gazed at the writing.

"_Discover the source of the mutagen that is turning our people to deranged animals, lest it swallow the entire village! Mutants that result from this change are shown to be very strong, thus only an S-Rank wizard will satisfy us. Reward of 8,000,000 J upon confirmation of success,"_the paper read. Victor adopted a confident grin as he reread the request.

"I want to do this one," he decided, and then he handed the paper to Blake so that he could look it over. Blake's eyes went wide as soon as he finished reading the job request.

Orb let out a sigh of exasperation, and then he hoisted himself to his feet and stared at Victor. The dragonslayer met the S-Rank wizard's stare with his own. He refused to back down, and that was reflected in his eyes.

"That job is for S-Rank wizards only, Victor. I'm afraid I cannot give you permission to do this job until you reach that level," Orb explained, and then he took the request back from Blake, who made the wise decision to stay out of this conversation. Victor slammed his fist into a nearby barrel, shattering it into pieces. Orb didn't flinch.

"That's bullshit! You don't get to tell me what I can and can't do!" the dragonslayer spat at Orb. The S-Rank wizard's eyes darkened, and a lightest hint of magic power could be felt emanating from his tall form.

"Victor, I'm not going to tell you again," Orb warned in a low, menacing voice. The wizard's hand was already resting on one of the lacrima on his belt, promising future pain. The dragonslayer didn't take the hint, however.

"If I want to do this job, then I'll fucking do it! You stay out of it!" Victor roared, shadows beginning to swirl up from around his feet. Orb snapped off the lacrima from his belt, the blue sphere starting to glow brightly.

"Victor! If you're going to be a part of this guild, then you need to follow the rules!" the wizard stepped closer to the dragonslayer, not fazed by the shadows swirling in the air.

"Hey now…can we…okay?" Blake tried to interject, but then the magic auras of both wizards burst into existence, knocking the wizard back. Blake's eyes were wide with fear. Victor had only just joined, and he was already preparing to fight one of their strongest members.

Victor stepped closer as well, so that both wizards were standing very close to one another, staring into one another's eyes with determination.

"I did not join this guild to be constrained by rules!" Victor shouted back at Orb, his fists and arms erupting into shadow.

Orb was about to reply when another, stronger magical power entered the room and completely suppressed both of theirs. It grew so strong, that both wizards were completely unable to move.

Victor's eyes were wide, the arteries bulging in his corneas. Sweat rolled down his temple. This wasn't Xanatos's magic, so who had this kind of power? The dragonslayer sighted movement from the corner of his eye, so he turned his head with difficulty.

Thorn walked delicately into the room, waves of crimson magical power flowing from her form into the air. Unlike before, when she had been all smiles, a dangerous frown was on her face. She let the magical aura dissipate, freeing up both Victor and Orb, who chose that moment to regain their breath.

"Both of you, stop acting like children!" Thorn snapped, her usually demure voice as hard as steel. Victor glared at her, angry that she would interrupt his argument. He was actually planning to take Orb on if he wasn't allowed to go.

"And who are you to talk, you little…!" Victor rounded on her next, but he didn't get very far. Thorn's hand moved through the air like a flash.

Victor grunted in pain, holding a hand to the already reddening skin on his face. He had barely even seen her move, and in a split second, his face felt like it was on fire. Thorn stood still, her hand hanging in the air after its deadly trajectory had finished. She let her hand fall back to her side.

"Victor! Show some respect for your guildmates. Orb! You should know better than to start a fight in the storage room of all places," Thorn admonished them separately, fixing each of them with her deadly glare while she addressed them. Victor gulped, while Orb just looked down at the ground.

"Tch…why should I…?" Victor grumbled, turning his head to the side to avoid Thorn's blistering glare. Thorn was in front of his face in an instant, the crimson aura erupting from around her once more.

"Because if you don't…there's be hell to pay," she warned ominously, her glare darkening. Victor took a step back, unable to comprehend that this woman could stand up to him at all. Before this, he had never respected a woman in his life. He had been called sexist for the way he treated them, but he had never really cared, because he had never found any woman to prove him wrong.

"Ha…haha…literally," came Blake's weak voice from the opposite side of the room. Thorn, satisfied that Victor had been successfully humbled, lowered her magic power and stepped back. She then allowed herself to laugh at Blake's joke. She ruffled the wizard's hair in a friendly manner.

"Oh how clever, Blake," Thorn remarked, half sarcastically. "I take it you remember your little date with dear Lilith?"

Blake's face turned whiter than chalk and he threw himself to the ground, whimpering pathetically. Thorn barked out her laughter, showing her fangs. Then she finally turned her attention to Orb, who had not said a word since he was scolded.

"Orb, Would be all right if I took that request?" Thorn then asks dulcetly, folding her slender arms behind her back. Orb refused to remove his gaze from the floor for fear of meeting Thorn's deceivingly innocent gaze. He handed the request to her.

"You are a higher rank than me. It is not my place to tell you what jobs you may or may not take," Orb replied diplomatically. Thorn laughs and turns around, heading for the door.

"A higher rank? Oh no, my friend. Stronger yes, but never a higher rank, my lord," she replies. "Victor, would you come with me for a moment?"

Victor blinked in shock, but he wordlessly followed her out the door, leaving Blake and Orb alone in the storage room.

"What did she mean by that, Orb?" Blake asked curiously. The wizard drew back when Orb lifted his face, revealing an incredibly furious expression. The S-Rank wizard turned around swiftly, his cape flapping in the air behind him as he strode out of the room.

"Absolutely nothing!" was Orb's sharp reply. Blake stood in the room alone, blinking in total confusion.

"What the fuck just happened?" he asked of the air.

* * *

Thorn led Victor back to the request board, still with the paper in her hands. Her previously frightening demeanor was now gone, replaced by the mysterious, suggestive one that she had worn when they had first met. Victor was currently rethinking his notions of the female gender at the moment, so he remained silent.

"You're eager, bold, and strong, Victor. You may at one point become on of the strongest members in the guild," Thorn began, showering the dragon slayer with compliments.

"Uh…y...yeah," Victor stammered, while he mentally cursed himself. This was unlike him.

"But you will not get there by ruffling the feathers of every S-Rank wizard you meet. Am I understood?" the girl teen continued, never once lifting her gaze from the dragonslayer. Victor nodded wordlessly, hating himself for how pathetic he looked.

"Good! Now, are you ready to go?" Thorn finally said, turning her body towards the exit of the guild. Victor blinked, not understanding.

"Go? Go where?" he asked stupidly. Thorn giggled in amusement at his confusion, and she lifted the request so that Victor could see it. The dragonslayer's eyes widened as he realized what was happening.

"You want to do this job right? As an S-Rank wizard, I am capable of taking on this job alone. That being said, there's no harm in escorting a rookie, right?" the wizard explains with a happy smile. Victor disliked that she called him rookie all the time, but he did appreciate being able to go on such an exciting job.

"Ooooooi! I'm coming too!" sounded Blake's voice. Thorn and Victor turned to see the wizard running towards them. Victor sighed in exasperation, realizing that he would have to do a job with a group for the first time in his life.

"That sounds good. One extra body along for the ride would help things greatly," Thorn responds.

"Along…for the…ride…" Blake repeats quietly under his breath, and then he adopts a goofy looking expression and turns a shade of red. Thorn notices that and glares at him.

"Hey! What are you thinking about?!"

* * *

After informing Renn of their intention to depart, the trio found themselves in one of Full Moon's carriages, though this one lacked the emblem to make cross-country traveling less hazardous. It wouldn't be good if the Rune Knights got onto them.

They left the city, sitting snug inside of the carriage. Victor did nothing but growl under his breath, hating the fact that he had to travel again. Blake was sound asleep, snoring obnoxiously. As Victor watched, the asleep wizard slowly slid down the wall until he was resting on Thorn's lap. The female wizard scowled in disgust and pushed the man onto the floor of the carriage, where he continued to sleep.

The ride was uneventful for the many hours they spent traveling. The sun moved slowly towards the horizon, lighting up the nearby clouds a wonderful shade of orange and pink. Thorn watched the sunset quietly, while Victor squirmed restlessly in his seat and Blake snored.

"We're almost there, I think," Thorn said softly as she gazed out towards the horizon.

"Finally," Victor grunted, his eyes scanning the request for the hundredth time that day. "I'm going stir-crazy here."

Thorn laughed softly, and then she gazed down at Blake. She abruptly stomped her boot onto the wizard's cheek, waking him instantly, but by no means gracefully.

"Ackph! I was sleep…oh, sorry Thorn," Blake snapped, and then he realized who had woken him. He got back into his seat, embarrassed that he had been lying in such a humiliating position.

"Now that we're almost here, let's go over the details, everyone. Victor, if you will?" Thorn finally continued, satisfied that everyone was listening. The dragonslayer looked confused for a moment, and then he noticed Thorn gazing pointedly at the paper in his hands. Victor nodded and handed the job request to the woman. She scanned over it swiftly.

"So, who's our client?" Blake asked excitedly. Victor crossed his arms and watched Thorn, listening.

"We have been contracted by Mayor Dosen of Merille, interestingly enough," Thorn remarked, her voice sounding intrigued. Victor knew none of those names, but it appeared Blake did.

"Merille? No way! That's the village next to Earth's Abyss, right?" Blake exclaimed loudly and then he pressed his face to the window of the carriage. It was only a second before he yells out loud. Victor winces at the sudden yell and scoffs in irritation. "There it is!"

"I don't know any of these places," Victor interrupted the ecstatic wizard's reverie. Blake ignored the dragonslayer and continued to peer out the window.

"I guess you've never been to this part of the country, then?" Thorn asked curiously, glancing Victor's way. The dragonslayer merely shook his head, finding the question not worth the effort of actually speaking.

"Dude, Vic, look out the window! I've never actually seen it in person before!" Blake continued while no one listened to him. The wizard seemed very excited for the mission to come, judging by his constant outbursts. Victor's expression contorted in annoyance at the abbreviation of his name.

"Don't call me that," the dragonslayer snapped. The exchange earned a chuckle from Thorn.

"I guess I should fill you in about this place," Thorn said to Victor. The dragonslayer turned his body to face her. Although the last thing he wanted was a history lesson, any good mercenary knew that the odds of success on a job may depend on their knowledge of the area. With that in mind, Victor sighed and waited for Thorn to continue. "Merille is a medium-sized village situated on the edge of the world's largest gorge, otherwise known as the Earth's abyss."

"What, so they found some crack in the ground, and gave it a name?" Victor reiterated with a hint of sarcastic humor in his voice. Thorn shook her head solemnly.

"Not just any crack in the ground. The Earth's Abyss is a gorge that spans the eastern border of Fiore. That should give you an idea of how long it is," the S-rank wizard remarked. Victor was visibly taken aback when he tried to visualize the gorge in his mind. He simply could not fathom that something like that existed.

"Ahaha, I can't believe I'm actually here!" Blake continued to spout out his excitement from his position at the window.

"How deep is this thing?" Victor asked. Thorn laughed a bit at that question.

"Merille earns a profit by drilling into the sides of the gorge and extracting valuable minerals such as crystal and iron. As each vein is used up, the village digs further down the gorge. It's been at least a century since the place was founded, and they have yet to reach the bottom," she explained. Victor's eyes bugged out at that explanation. She expected him to believe that the gorge was supposedly bottomless? Something like that couldn't exist.

"Interesting. That aside, what do you think about these mutants? How strong do you think they are?" the dragonslayer finally broached the subject he had been wanting to ask about. The only reason he was here really was just to fight. He would get bored if his opponents were weak. He smashed his fists together, causing wisps of shadow to appear around his knuckles.

"Strong enough that regular wizards were beaten down," Blake put in, finally rejoining them. "I'm quite worried actually. We still don't even know why those infected are considered mutants."

"Who knows? Transformation, decomposition, magic corruption; the symptoms could be any number of things usually associated with magical sicknesses," Thorn mused. Blake began to look slightly pale.

"That's assuming that this 'mutagen' is actually a magical sickness," Victor butted in. When the others looked at him in surprise, he huffed. "What? Am I not allowed to make suggestions too?"

"No, your input is valued. I am merely surprised that you think it could be anything else. A virus that bestows great power to its victims, but at the cost of their mind; it has to be a magical sickness," Thorn replied, her face beginning to look troubled.

"One thing I've learned during my time as a mercenary is that jobs are rarely ever clear-cut. The one who issues the request generally has a bias about what they're asking you to do," Victor related to the other inhabitants of the carriage. "Because of that, they tend to overlook key details that would imply circumstances other than what they stated."

"Wow. I had you pegged for an all brawn and no brains type. I guess you're smarter than you look," Blake remarked, clearly impressed. Victor gave him a glare, but didn't move.

"Thanks, I guess," Victor growled. Thorn looked pensive after the dragonslayer had finished speaking. She seemed to be deep in thought. Victor was satisfied to see that she was thinking hard about what he said.

"Hm…you may be right, Victor. I guess there's nothing we can do other than wait for the mayor to explain things further," Thorn finally said. Victor nodded wordlessly.

* * *

It was only a few minutes before the carriage slowed to a stop. Unlike normal carriages, which generally required the magical energy of the driver to function, this carriage was run automatically by a lacrima that could store large amounts of magical energy, along with detailed directions to the carriage's destination.

"Oh yeah! I wanna get a closer look at that gorge!" Blake exclaimed, bolting out of the carriage. Victor thought he was acting like a small child. The gorge sounded surreal to the dragonslayer, but he didn't think it was anything to get that excited about.

Victor and Thorn hopped out of the carriage, looking around them and taking in their surroundings. The carriage had dropped them right in front of the village's main entrance.

Unlike the city where Full Moon made its base, Merille was much smaller and was situated along a rising slope, with structures made mostly out of plaster and wood dotting the hillside. Since it was on a hill, Victor could see above the wooden wall that surrounded the village to the rising slope behind it.

There was a series of streets arranged in concentric circles around the hill, growing smaller in diameter the closer they were to the hilltop. Each of these circles would be connected to another by more streets.

At the very top of the hill was a structure larger than the others in the village, probably to signify its importance. Victor could easily tell that the structure up top was supposed to be the town hall or mayor's residence. He scoffed at the vanity of the mayor.

Looking past the village, Victor could see a thick dark line on the horizon. He assumed that was the gorge. Unfortunately, he was too far away to get a better look at it. Though he wasn't as giddy about it as Blake was, he certainly wanted to see this so called Earth's Abyss for himself.

"The gate is closed, and I don't see any guards," Thorn observed aloud, drawing Victor's attention to the wooden gate. She was right; there was no sign of any sort of sentry in front of the gate or atop the nearby buildings. "This doesn't bode well."

"You think we might be too late? The mutants may have already got them," Blake suggested. Thorn didn't answer, instead gazing up at the top of the hill with a worried expression on her face.

"If they don't answer, I'll knock it down," Victor asserted, cracking his knuckles. He approached the wooden gate before Thorn or Blake could stop him. He pounded his fist onto the wooden surface several times, announcing their presence. "Oi! Open up!"

There was silence from beyond the walls. Victor grunted and crossed his arms. A feeling of foreboding beset the dragonslayer as no one answered his rather forceful greeting.

"Don't scare me like that, Vic. I actually thought you were going to break it down," Blake admonished the dragonslayer.

"Like I'm really going to. And don't call me that!" Thorn chuckled at their antics, and then continued to watch the gate intently. She soon spotted a figure climbing up a watchtower just inside the gates.

"Hey, there's someone up there," Thorn pointed out, nudging Blake to get his attention. Victor looked up and saw the figure as well, which was now standing on top of the watchtower and was gazing down at them.

"Who are you? Answer quickly, or risk annihilation!" the figure called in a distinctly male voice. Victor raised an eyebrow at their threat. He seriously doubted that they were strong enough to 'annihilate' anyone, seeing as they needed help to handle their own problems.

A click, and then a whirring sound brought him out of his thoughts. Victor watched in shock as hatches began to open in the wooden walls on either side of the gate. Large, slender tubes made of steel inched out of the hatches. Victor noticed the perforated interior of each of the tubes, and realized that he was staring at several miniature magic-focusing cannons.

"Holy shit! That's some serious firepower!" Blake murmured worriedly. The wizard promptly hid himself behind Thorn, who was already taking charge of the situation.

"We are wizards from Full Moon. We have come in response to your quest," Thorn called back to the figure. There was silence in response to her words for a few moments.

"Full Moon? Isn't that the dark guild that rules Natrasil Fortress?" Victor could hear voices whispering behind the walls. They seemed scared and worried, which was reflected in their voices.

"I didn't think a dark guild would respond to our request."

"Do we really want people like that here in the village?"

"I honestly don't care, as long as this mess is cleaned up."

Victor continued to hear discontented murmurs from the other villagers behind the gates. They were faint, however, so Victor doubted that Blake or Thorn could hear them. He could hear them thanks to his heightened senses as a dragonslayer.

"Show us your emblems!" the man atop the watchtower commanded. There was the sound of magical energy sparking inside the cannons. It seems they had been forced to extremes to defend against their mutant problem.

Thorn lifted up the hem of her dark shirt to show the mark of Full Moon situated just beneath her breasts. Next to her, Blake pulled down his collar to show the emblem on his sternum. All Victor needed to do, since he was wearing his favorite sleeveless grey shirt, was turn to the side to show the emblem on his shoulder up to the guard.

"They're legitimate! Open the gate!" the figure finally said, finding the spectacle enough to satisfy his suspicion. Victor could hear the sound of the charging cannons fade away to nothing.

The large wooden gates slowly grated open, revealing the crowd of villagers that were waiting just beyond. Most of them were holding weapons such as spears and swords, though it was clear that barely any of them knew how to really wield them. It seems Victor had underestimated how desperate things in the village actually were. Even as the gates opened, the cannons retracted back into the hatches, which closed soon after.

The villager that had been on the watchtower was the first one to greet the three Full Moon wizards. He was dressed in a manner unlike the other villagers, whose clothes mainly consisted of cloth colored in shades of green and brown. This man wore heavy armor and sported a particularly lethal looking naginata. If the glowing lacrima in the cross guard of the weapon was anything to go by, it was magical as well.

"I apologize for the welcome. The mutants are getting better and better at hiding their monstrous nature, so we can't be too careful," the man addressed Thorn directly, much to Blake's chagrin and Victor's annoyance.

"Well, there's no harm done. Come on, you two," Thorn replied to the man, gesturing for Victor and Blake to follow her. They did so, the man leading them all inside the gates.

"Now that you're all inside, it's time I told you exactly what it is you are up against. My name is Grym, the commander of the militia that you see gathered around you," the man introduced himself to the wizards, ushering them through the crowd of villagers. Victor realized that they must be the militia Grym was referring to, due to their brandished weapons. Each of the villagers gave them worried looks as they passed by. The tension and desperation in the air was almost tangible. Victor wondered not for the first time how bad the situation really was.

"Don't bother telling me your names just yet. Save that for when you meet the mayor," Grym cut across Thorn even as she opened her mouth to reply. She shut her mouth and looked put out, but remained silent.

As they walked through the streets, Victor could see other villagers coming out of their homes and gazing at them with varying degrees of hope and fear. The dragonslayer could smell a copious amount of blood in the air, indicating that many of the villagers were injured. In fact, every so often Victor would see one of the villagers with half-soaked bandages wrapped around their limbs.

The closer the three got to the mayor's residence, the more Victor became aware of another, stranger scent. It smelled similar to a typical human scent, but he could smell something almost reptilian about it.

"What is it?" Blake questioned Victor warily after he noticed the dragonslayer sniffing around like a dog. Victor shook his head wordlessly, warning Blake not to ask just yet. He wasn't sure the villagers could be completely trusted just yet. It wasn't that odd for a client to murder the mercenary after a job was finished, so that he or she wouldn't have to pay any money. Such a thing had happened to Victor as well, though the client in his case had not planned for a very angry dragonslayer.

Thorn attempted to ask Grym more questions about the situation, but every time she asked, the commander would just tell her to save her questions for the mayor. It only served to increase their suspicions further.

Finally, Grym led them to the front of the mayor's residence. The commander stopped just near the door, where two more members of the militia stood guard. The three wizards halted there as well, waiting patiently for more to be explained to them.

"I've led you to the mayor's residence. He will tell you all you need to know regarding the job. Now, I must take my leave," Grym addressed them once more. Before any of them thought to detain him, Grym was already walking back down the hill towards the rest of the militia.

"I don't like this at all. Every ounce of my instincts is urging me to get out of this village now," Victor finally said to Thorn and Blake. His sentiments served to confuse the other two wizards, who had expected him to be raring for a fight.

"This coming from you? I didn't think you'd be the cowardly type," Blake teased. Victor growled and shoved the wizard roughly, though Blake only grinned.

"I was talking seriously, you jackass. Don't you agree that something about this whole affair is odd?" the dragonslayer continued.

"I agree. However, no matter what our misgivings are, we must complete the job we were given," Thorn spoke up. Her support made Victor feel a little better about the situation. Even if things went south, Thorn was stronger than the two of them combined, he was sure.

Now that their resolve was strengthened, the three walked into the residence, the two militia opening the elaborate wooden door for them. The inside took Victor aback.

Though wealthy clients before had hired him, he'd never been invited into their homes. The mayor clearly reaped the benefits of the booming mineral business that originated from Merille, if the luxurious interior was anything to go by.

Victor's boots sank into the lush, royal blue carpet that covered the majority of the main living area. Strangely enough, the entrance hall had been converted into a makeshift clinic, as there were stretchers and beds lining the walls and covering the floor. Injured villagers lay atop these, crying out in pain or lying silent.

"This is horrible…why hasn't any of the other guilds responded to this?" Blake said as he glanced over the wounds of the injured.

"That's a good question," Thorn replied suspiciously. "If it was this desperate, you'd think the reward would have been higher in order to invite more wizards in."

Victor glanced at the injured, noticing something strange about them. Like before, he could smell something reptilian hidden amongst the typical human scent. Something else that was suspicious was that he couldn't actually see any wounds. Sure, the wounded were obviously in pain and were bandaged, but nowhere did Victor actually see any actual wounds. He could smell blood, but it was always tinged with that reptilian scent. Something was definitely odd here.

"Are you the guild wizards?" another villager walked up to them with a strange expression on her face. Her gloved hands were covered in blood, and Victor could smell the reptilian smell even stronger from her hands. She wore an eye patch over her left eye, matching her dark hair nicely. When Thorn nodded in affirmation, the woman smiled slightly. "Good to hear. I'm Tourmaline, or Tora for short. I'm tending to the victims here."

"I guess they really hit you hard, huh," Blake observed the wounded in the room with a sorrowful look in his eyes. Tora nodded sadly, gazing over her fellow villagers.

"Ever since the first one showed up, wounded have been piling up in the hospital, so we were forced to house them here," Tora explained, gesturing for the wizards to follow her. Victor could feel the eyes of the injured following him as he followed Tora through the room.

"What are these mutants like? All I've been able to figure out is that they are harming the villagers," Thorn asked Tora.

"Save your questions for the mayor. He will be able to answer all of your questions," was all Tora would say in reply. Thorn scowled at that, but didn't protest any further.

Tora finally led them out of the main hall and into a smaller chamber, where a man in his late middle ages was standing just in front of another doorway. The man was clearly the mayor; his clothing gave him away in an instant.

"Sir, the guild wizards are here to see you," Tora announced. The man turned his head to view the wizards. Upon confirming their presence, the mayor completely turned around and walked towards Thorn, greeting her with a smile and a firm handshake.

"Ah, you are a sight for sore eyes. We have been waiting for capable wizards such as yourselves to help us for quite some time. I am Mayor Dosen, but you may call me Armand," the mayor introduced himself to Thorn enthusiastically. If Thorn was disconcerted by his overzealous welcome, she didn't show it. She gave him a small smile back before extricating her hand from his firm grip.

"Nice to meet you, Armand. My name is Thorn, an S-Rank wizard from the guild Full Moon. This is Victor and Blake, my teammates," Thorn returned Armand's greeting in kind. Victor was slightly surprised that she referred to him as her teammate, but he didn't say anything about it, allowing her to take the lead. His specialty was mainly blowing things up, anyway, so it was better that Thorn did the talking.

"Full Moon…ah! It comes as a shock to me that it was a dark guild that responded to our request," Armand gasped, obviously recognizing the name of the guild. Thorn smiled wryly.

"You don't need to worry about that. We are only dark because our views of righteousness differ from the council. You may rest assured that your request will be carried out to the letter," the woman assured Armand. The mayor relaxed after he took her words into consideration.

"I see. Well, it's time to get down to business then," Armand grew serious then, his face darkening. He spoke a strange incantation, and then Victor could see runes dissolving into nothingness from in front of the door. The mayor opened the door and beckoned them inside. "So far, you know that our village is beset by a strange mutagen that alters those it infects, but you have yet to see the extent of this alteration."

Once inside, Victor found himself in a small room. Unlike the other rooms, the walls of the room were coated in a metal of some kind. However that wasn't the most interesting aspect of the room. In the center of the room was a metal table, upon which was dark figure. Victor's eyes shot wide when he saw just what was on the table.

"What in fuck is that?!" Blake exclaimed, while Thorn just frowned and approached the table warily. Victor did the same, the reptilian smell from the figure nearly causing him to pass out.

The figure on the table looked normal from the waist up. It appeared to be the shirtless form of a well-built, slender man with chiseled abs and muscled arms. The man had short black hair with streaks of grey running through it, and he currently wore a serene expression, as if he was only sleeping. That was where the normal ended.

From below the waist, the man's legs joined together into one, forming a long, scaly tail that coiled upon itself and drooped off of the table and onto the ground. The scales were colored a ruby red, contrasting with the man's hair. Victor now realized he was looking at a mythical naga, to his shock. Such things shouldn't exist, yet one was lying on the table before his very eyes. Was this a hoax, or was this just one more thing about life that Victor had wrong?

"The…the mutagen did this?" Blake gasped, taking in the sight of the half man, half snake. Armand nodded solemnly, running a hand through the hair of the inert naga.

"This was once my son, a brilliant man with a bright future. The mutagen turned him into this, and before long, his body could no longer handle it," Armand related, his voice breaking. Thorn's expression softened as she gazed at the mayor, though it was clear that she was shocked by the state of the man on the table.

"Are you sure this is just a mutagen? This is a naga, I'll have you know," Victor finally spoke. Armand shot the dragonslayer an odd look that he could not decipher, but he paid it no mind.

"You're right, Victor. It's strange that a mutagen would mutate a normal human into a mythical creature," Thorn agreed. Armand's expression turned unreadable, causing Victor to glare at him suspiciously. Was he hiding something?

"This is not the only form that the mutagen bestows to its victims. There are others that we have been forced to kill that were in different forms. Tora's brother sprouted wings and feathers, and we haven't seen him since then." Armand revealed. Victor rubbed his chin as he thought about that.

"Sounds like a harpy, except male," Blake remarked. Victor nodded, agreeing with that hypothesis. "This is getting stranger and stranger by the minute."

"Tell me, Armand. When did the mutagen first start infecting the villagers?" Thorn interrupted the musings of her teammates. The mayor sighed as he prepared to answer.

"Several months ago, in fact. The miners discovered a sizeable vein of crystal not far beneath the old iron mines. They were just telling us about their discovery over a communication lacrima when we lost contact," Armand began.

"Crystal is used to make lacrima. Are you sure that the crystal in the walls wasn't just interfering with communications?" Victor suggested. Armand shook his head impatiently, so the dragonslayer let him continue.

"Although we were alarmed, we gave it some time before we decided to go after them. After a few days, we realized that the expedition wasn't going to return. So we sent a search team down into the mines after them," Armand continued. Thorn, Blake, and Victor listened intently. The more they knew, the better.

"It was that night when the first victim of the mutagen emerged from the mines. The mutant's legs were replaced by the lower body of a horse, I think, and he had a bow," Armand continued his story, describing the first mutant.

"Centaur. Interesting," Victor remarked, noticing a pattern. The mutagen seemed to be transforming humans into mythical creatures, something that didn't seem normal for a typical virus. Something didn't seem right.

"The mutant slaughtered our guards and broke into the village, obviously gone mad from the pain of transformation. It was only thanks to Commander Grym and his militia that the mutant wasn't able to progress much further," Armand finished his story.

"That couldn't have been it, though," Thorn pressed. Armand sighed and looked down, a somber look crossing his aging face.

"Not even close. Each night, another mutant would come out of the mines and attack. Everyone that lived after being dealt an injury by a mutant would transform themselves, and were forced to be put down," Armand related. "We've been fighting them off for months. Even Commander Grym is beginning to tire, and morale is incredibly low. It's why the town is hoping that you will find and exterminate the source of the mutagen before we are all wiped out."

"Sounds easy enough. So we just go into those mines, find the source, and smash it along with any mutants in our way," Victor summed up all of the information he had received in his head in an instant. Thorn let her face fall into her hand, while Blake just chuckled.

"I doubt it will be that simple," Blake remarked. Victor shrugged, as he really didn't see another way of dealing with this. If they bunkered down with the villagers and helped fight off the mutants, that wouldn't solve the problem.

"Blake is correct. If Armand is right, then one injury from a mutant spells the end of us," Thorn reasoned. Armand nodded solemnly. "Though I do believe that there's no other alternative than entering the mines, as the mutagen clearly originated from down there."

Victor grinned wolfishly, smashing his fists together, wisps of shadow tricking out from between his fingers. Now that he had a life or death situation awaiting him, he was pumped. This was much better than fighting bandits and thugs.

"Bring it on. When do we leave?" the dragonslayer demanded eagerly, already moving for the door. Thorn chuckled at his eagerness and went to follow him.

"Please, stay. You must be tired after your long trip. Why don't you stay for the night?" Armand offers with a friendly smile on his face. Victor halted just in front of the door. He and Thorn exchanged suspicious glances. Blake stood aside, waiting for Thorn to make the executive decision.

"Thank you for your kindness, Armand. We'll gladly take you up on your offer," the woman affirmed. Victor sighed, acting as if he was disappointed. He was, but he was more worried about spending a night in a town of mutants.

"Wait, don't mutants come out of the mines at night? Shouldn't we go now and crush it before they have a chance to invade again?" Blake points out. Thorn and Victor turned to Armand and waited for a response.

"You don't need to worry about that. Commander Grym's militia will be enough to halt their advance," Armand assured them, though Victor thought his expression looked shifty. For now, he deferred to Thorn's judgment. He didn't want to act on an impulse that he couldn't even define.

"I see. In that case, let's stay and relax. It would be better to tackle the mines once we are fully rested," Thorn responded for Blake, causing the wizard to give her an annoyed look.

Armand smiled and led them back out into the makeshift hospital where the wounded lay.

None of them noticed the naga's eyes shoot open, revealing yellow, slitted pupils. A grin crossed the naga's face.

* * *

Tora was waiting for them patiently, just outside of the room. Victor found that odd. She's a nurse, so why wasn't she tending to the patients?

"Tourmaline, would you kindly escort our visitors to the inn? Make sure their needs are attended to," the mayor said to Tora. The nurse curtsied respectfully and then beckoned the three wizards.

Despite their trepidation, Thorn led Blake and Victor out of the mayor's residence after Tora, who remained silent the entire way.

After stepping outside, Victor let out a relieved sigh. That reptilian smell was weaker outside, much to his pleasure. He understood that the smell came from the dead naga, but it was odd to smell the naga on other things, such as the blood that had been on Tora's gloves. She was not wearing those gloves now, but Victor could still smell a faint hint of reptile on her.

"What are you doing, Victor?" Blake whispered to the dragonslayer when he saw him sniffing around near Tora. Victor pulled back as Tora turned her head towards the wizard's voice. Thankfully, she seemed none the wiser to his investigation. The moment she turned back around, Victor nudged Blake hard in the side and placed a finger to his lips. Blake nodded, though he looked confused.

"This is the Beryl Inn. If you'll go inside, you'll find that the arrangements for your stay have already been arranged. Just ask at the front desk," Tora informed them when she brought them to a stop just in front of a decently sized building. It didn't look any different than the other buildings, except for the glowing yellow lacrima that was embedded in the wall just over the entrance. Victor guessed that the lacrima was the symbolic "beryl" of the inn.

"Thank you very much," Thorn replied amicably. Tora curtsied again, and then she left them to their own devices. Blake opened his mouth to say something, but Thorn cut him off. "Not here. Wait until we're in the room."

The three walked into the inn in silence. The first things Victor saw upon entering were the tables and chairs scattered around in front of the front desk. There were other villagers eating and drinking there. Conversation was loud and raucous, but the second the three wizards walked inside, every villager went silent.

A dead silence filled the room as the villagers gazed at the wizards with unreadable expressions on their faces. Victor shivered involuntarily, not used to having so many eyes on him at once.

Thorn awkwardly led them to the front desk. The atmosphere of unease had only increased by the sudden silence. Victor wanted nothing to be in the room already, so he could explain some of this unease to his teammates.

The female clerk at the desk was the only one who was pleased to see them. Her right eye was bandaged heavily for some reason, but none of the wizards felt the need to ask about it. After checking in, the clerk led them to their room.

The room was small, possessing a bathroom and three beds, thankfully. Victor heaved a sigh when the door shut behind them, leaving the three alone for the first time since they arrived. Blake practically threw himself onto the closest bed. He sunk his face into the pillow, sighing happily. Thorn giggled at his happiness. She gracefully chose the bed farthest from the door, leaving Victor with the bed in the center.

"So where do you want to start?" was Thorn's first question. Blake laughed at the way she phrased it, while Victor said nothing. The dragonslayer moved over to his bed and sat down. The mattress creaked under his weight slightly. He crossed his arms and then looked directly at Thorn.

"I don't like this village. Not one bit," Victor spat out the last word like it was poison, his brows wrinkling in contemplation.

"Really? Why? The mayor seemed rather forthcoming. As long as we don't get injured, it looks to be an easy job," Blake responded. Victor rested his face in his hand, wondering how his teammate could be such an idiot.

"Let me just give a list of things I've noticed so far. Why is the mutagen transforming people into mythical creatures? Viruses are never that orderly. If it was a true mutagen, then the transformation would be haphazard and incomplete. For example, the man in that metal room would be scaly, but would not be a complete naga," Victor began. Thorn nodded, acknowledging the sense behind the dragonslayer's words.

"So what, you don't think the villagers know what they're talking about?" Blake questioned. Victor shook his head firmly.

"What's suspicious to me is that the villagers don't seem very happy to see us. If things are as desperate as they are making it out to be, then why aren't they celebrating, or at least greeting us with smile?" Thorn added. Blake looked between her and Victor, the wheels turning in his head.

"Okay, so spit it out already. What exactly do you think is going on?" the wizard finally said. Victor sighed and looked down. Many different theories were spiraling in his head, but none of them fit just right. Honestly, he didn't know what exactly was going on.

"I can't say for sure, but I can see that their plight is real. We have no choice but to stop this virus or whatever at the source," Victor asserted. Thorn nodded in agreement.

"All right! I get to go into the Earth's Abyss!" Blake promptly exclaims loudly, throwing his arms up into the air. Victor ignored him and laid back on the bed, looking up at the wooden ceiling.

"Both of you, get some rest. We should be fully rested for the excursion tomorrow," Thorn demanded. Blake nodded and began removing his Full Moon outfit rather blatantly. Victor averted his eyes, but Thorn didn't seem fazed at all by his lack of modesty.

"I think one of us should stay awake and keep watch. I won't feel safe sleeping here otherwise," Victor suggested. Blake groaned, thinking that it would be him that was chosen to do so.

Thorn slowly reached a hand down to her side and into her pocket. Victor watched in curiosity as she drew from within a small finger bone. He raised an eyebrow. He remembered seeing her holding a finger bone back at the guild, but he didn't know what she used them for. Then, as he watched, Thorn tossed the bone up into the air. She snapped her fingers. The bone shattered instantly, forming into a dark crimson magic circle. Victor felt extremely powerful magical power fill the room, causing his hairs to stand on end. Blake turned his head and watched in awe at the spectacle.

"Cross the River Styx to receive your payment…" Thorn spoke in a low voice, raising her arms into the air. The magic circle grew in size as she continued to speak. "Charon!"

Blake and Victor watched with wide eyes as a small wave of pitch black water surged through the room, covering the floor with an inch of liquid. The wall closest to Thorn suddenly began undulating, as if it had suddenly become immaterial.

The prow of a longboat eased out of the wall. It sailed across the shallow water into the room, propelled by the graceful oar held by an ominous figure. Standing on the boat was a skeleton, dressed in dark robes and wearing a pitch black sedge hat that slightly obscured its eternally grinning face from view. Clasped in its bony hands was the shaft of a long oar. The edges of the head of the oar were bladed, making the tool double as a lethal weapon. Victor shivered involuntarily as he looked at the figure. Was this Thorn's magic?

"Charon dear, would you mind standing guard over this room until dawn?" Thorn asked the skeleton sweetly, the tips of her fangs jutting out over her lower lip. Blake's jaw dropped. Victor couldn't believe it. She was going to ask some demonic entity to watch over them? Thorn was amazing in so many different ways.

"_It shall be done," _Charon responded, his jaw never moving. His voice was deep and otherworldly. Victor now wished he'd have kept his damn mouth shut. This thing was scarier than the villagers.

"Good. That takes care of that. Good night all!" Thorn bid to them, getting under the covers of her bed and shutting her eyes. Victor and Blake looked at one another, and then at the skeleton that stood stalwart on its boat.

"I'm never going to be able to sleep now," Blake whispers to Victor with a wry grin on his face, though he did get under the blankets. Victor let out a dry chuckle.

"I hear that," he muttered, following suit.

* * *

There we go, another chapter out of the way. No fighting, unfortunately, but I was able to set the groundwork for the first arc! I call it, the Mutagen Arc! It will take up maybe three of Victor's chapters in the best case scenario, and six of Victor's chapters in the worst case. I estimate six because there are going to be fights for each of the three of them, and if I manage to make the fights as long as my Saturos fight, then they'll be chapters in and of themselves.

So feel free to speculate to me what you think is going on in this village! Why does the virus turn people into mythical creatures, instead of more recognizable mutations such as tentacular structures or multiple limbs? Leave a review with your thoughts! Because I've been getting like…none T.T

Keelah Se'lai,

The Proud Quarian,

Terran34


	7. Astral Projection

I don't know what the hell I was thinking. Learn magic they said. It would be easy, they said. Yeah freaking right. After blowing up the practice field, I was all confident, thinking that I was the god of magic, and that my life would be easy from then on. Yeah no.

"That's pitiful, Ker! You're supposed to strike the target with the lightning, not yourself!" Cana yells at me. I'm lying on the ground like a sloth, electricity running over my tired body like conduit. Goddammit, I hate the Tower Arcana now.

Cana is trying to get me to learn how to summon lightning using a combination of three different Arcana. Easier said than done. The first time I tried, I forgot the order that the cards were supposed to be in, and accidentally summoned a miniature tidal wave. The second time, my klutzy nature kicked in and I dropped the cards everywhere, causing the magic to dissipate. The third time, I forgot to reverse the Tower card, and the lightning bolt hit ME instead.

You know, at least I know how to call upon my inherent magic power. Which I still can't believe I even have.

"Get up and try again!" my impromptu teacher screams down at me. With a groan, I hoist myself to my feet, though my limbs are twitching like crazy. I am a human, not an electrical wire…so let's not do that again.

"Moron! Reversing the Tower card is _essential! _It determines whether your magic targets yourself or your enemy! Come on, I told you that already!" Cana continues to lecture me harshly. I'm beginning to think that this was a bad idea. Can I just stick to astral projection? If that's even what I'm experiencing.

"Why is there even a card that targets yourself…?" I complain, though I'm already picking up the cards and trying to arrange them correctly. Cana swats me over the head lightly, but I wince all the same.

"Because some of my combination effects are beneficial! I know you have a brain in there somewhere," she explains. Ugh.

We've been at this since I finished my talk with Makarov. Needless to say, I've sucked at everything she's tried to teach me. Though I love Arcana, nothing I do with them seems to turn out right. I've injured myself more than I have that confounded target in front of me. Not to mention, Cana is a vicious task master. She never asks nicely. She's been screaming at me every time I do something wrong, and it's starting to get on my nerves. I know I asked to learn this, but she should at least be a little understanding. I mean, come on! I never even considered that magic was real two days ago!

Thankfully, the sun is starting to reach the horizon, so soon I'll have an excuse to call it quits. With every time I release my magic, whether successful or not, I only get more fatigued. Add the pain from my own self-injury, and I'm practically in agony. However, every time I think about chickening out, I always imagine Priscilla's disappointed face, and I get even more determined to learn this confounded Card Magic. I will get strong, for her sake.

As the sky grows dimmer, Cana decides to try and teach me how to sharpen the edges of the cards in midair using my magic. This is significantly easier than trying to combine the effects of two or more cards, but she forgets to mention that I have to control the trajectory of the cards with magic as well.

So as you can see, I toss the cards she gives me and they go every which way, so that she and I have to duck for cover. Then I get screamed at for another five minutes about the proper way to throw a card. Ugh, why can't I just be like that guy from Persona 3 and become a god at everything just because I have plot armor? Pfft, like I have plot armor. This is real life, not a story or a game of some sort.

"All right, fine. Let's be done for now," Cana finally says after I nearly impale myself through the shoulder with a misplaced card. She looks disappointed, and I can't say that I blame her. I guess I just don't have the knack for this Card Magic stuff.

"Okay. I…uh...I'm sorry I…" I begin tentatively. I don't want her to think I'm ungrateful for all the time she's put into trying to train me. She cuts me off with a wave of her hand, though.

"Don't worry about it. Maybe this type of magic just isn't your thing," Cana replies with an exasperated edge to her voice. That just makes me feel worse. I hope she doesn't go in and get drunk or any…oh who am I kidding. This is _Cana _we're talking about. The one who drinks beer out of a mother-fucking barrel.

We return to the guild in a depressing silence. God, I hate it when I waste people's time like this. What, are you surprised that I'm not an actual asshole? No, I'm not generally a jerk. I feel too. Huh. Who am I even trying to convince here?

When we enter the guild again, it's just as lively as usual. I don't think it'll ever be completely quiet in here.

"Oi, Mira! We're gonna take this job, all right?" Gray calls to Mirajane, ripping off one of the pieces of paper off of the bulletin board. Out of curiosity, I notice Juvia standing right next to him, looking excited out of her mind. I'm guessing the two of them are going together. Wait, didn't he arrive with Natsu and Erza? I thought they were a team…or were they? Hell I don't know.

"Okay! Make sure you get some rest tonight for departing!" Mirajane calls back. Gray shoots her a thumbs up, and then proceeds to fold the paper into quarters and place it in his back pocket. He heads for the door, closely followed by his blue-haired love minion. Or whatever.

"I'm heading back to my pl…" Gray starts to say, but then he runs directly into Erza's armored chest and falls down on his ass. "Hey what the…E…ERZA?!"

"Make sure you are not gone for long. I plan to take, you, Natsu, and Lucy along on our own job," Erza picks Gray up by his collarbone, which results in a hilarious scene where the ice wizard is flailing about in her grip for a few seconds until he's finally on his feet. Damn, that woman is strong.

"Erzaaaa! What about meee?" Happy squeals pitifully, flying through the air towards the armored woman, only for her to walk past the cat and sit back at her table. "Meanie!"

Gray and Juvia walk past us and leave the guild, giving us a wave on their way out.

"Juvia…the girl's dorm is over there…" I can hear Gray say to Juvia before they move out of earshot. I chuckle to myself.

"It is getting late, so I'll head out myself," Lucy is the next to speak up. Natsu is next to her, his head planted firmly on the table with his mouth wide open. It's obvious to anyone that he's fast asleep.

I watch Natsu sleep with amusement. This guild is definitely crazy, but it's homey in a wacked out sort of way. Actually, the only thing I'm missing are my parents and my music. God knows I didn't have that many friends in college, because I spent a lot of my time inside my dorm, working on my own personal projects.

Speaking of sleeping, I seem to have a bit of a problem. I'm broke…like, flat broke. I can't keep relying on Cana for everything, because I don't like being a moocher. I can't pay her back for any of the food she's bought me until I learn some form of magic. Anyway, because I'm broke, I can't afford a place to sleep. Where the hell am I going to sleep tonight?

"Great…looks like the streets it is," I mutter to myself under my breath. Despite the low volume, Lucy overhears me and looks at me in confusion.

"Huh? Don't you have a place to sleep?" she asks me in surprise and curiosity. I shake my head sadly. I am so not looking forward to sleeping on that cobblestone street. At that moment, Happy managed to snag a fish from somewhere and so he lands on Natsu's head, waking the wizard up. Natsu yawns widely and stretches his arms, knocking Happy off of him.

"Why don't you sleep at Lucy's? She always lets me use her bed!" Natsu suggests in all seriousness. I look at him, incredulous, and then I look at Lucy. I can feel a blush tinting my cheeks despite my efforts to keep my cool, but all I can imagine is Natsu and Lucy sleeping together and…what the fuck?

"THAT'S BECAUSE YOU KEEP HIJACKING IT!" Lucy rails at him, her eyes wide and furious and her mouth twisted into a grimace. And my respect for Lucy goes up. Hooray for pure women…wait why the fuck do I even care?

"But I get the best sleep in your bed!"

Maybe I can ask Makarov if he knows a place I can sleep for free. Or maybe even a warehouse or something. I just don't want to have to sleep on the streets. I don't know how high the crime rate here is in Magnolia, and I'm not eager to find out.

"And why should I care about that? It's MY BED! MINE!"

I don't even look at Erza, because there's no way I'm going to ask a girl for help on this. I'll look like a pervert no matter how I word the question.

"Luuucyyyyy…."

Mira…no same reason as Erza. Look's like I'll just go and ask the master for help. I walk past the bickering Lucy and Natsu and move towards the short old man that runs the guild.

"Don't 'Lucy' me! Sheesh, you're almost more trouble than you're worth." Lucy and Natsu, followed by Happy, leave the guild hall and disappear from sight. The other members of Fairy Tail are slowly filtering out into the night. Finally, even Gajeel leaves, soon followed by two other girls and a white cat that looked to be the same species as Happy, both with blue hair. I heard one of the girls refer to the other as Wendy.

"Master, I seem to have a bit of a problem," I admit to the older man, who looks up at me once he hears my voice. He looks awfully serious. Huh, that's probably because of the whole astral projection thing. God, I hope I can pull it off. It would really suck if this is going to be the ONE night where I don't dream. "I don't have anywhere to sleep."

"Mm, that's right, you didn't seem to have much money, since Cana paid for your meals," Makarov muses. He rubs his chin and looks towards the ceiling, as if he's thinking hard about what to do with me.

"Master, perhaps he can stay at Natsu's place," Erza suggests, coming up to us. Oh boy, if I did that, I'd be scared of turning into a side of roast beef in the middle of the night just because he happened to sneeze a fireball in his sleep. I can't keep a straight face at that thought.

"I suppose that would work, provided that Natsu is willing to allow it," Makarov agreed tentatively, his head rotating towards me to see my reaction. I smile uncertainly, since I'm still technically being a moocher, as much as I hate to admit it.

Erza adopts this confident…and scary I might add, look on her face. "I'm sure he'll see fit to house him," she replies to the master with an odd edge in her voice. I shudder involuntarily, having a pretty good idea of how she would convince Natsu.

"Well, I don't want to be a burden on him…" I begin, but I trail off when Erza's glare descends on me. I quail under the force of that glare. Damn, this girl is freaking scary!

"Let's go, Kerrich," Erza urged me. I feel her armored hand close around my wrist, and she literally starts dragging me out the door. I nearly fall over, but I manage to right myself, and then I attempted to extricate my wrist from her…heh, pun…iron grip. The ridges of her gauntlet chafe like a bitch!

"Ow, lemme go! I can walk on my own!" I complain, even as we left the guild and strode into the night.

After a little more complaining as well as various sounds of pain, Erza sees fit to release my hand, which I promptly start rubbing in order to get the blood flowing again. Crazy redhead.

"So where is Natsu's place anyway?" is my next question to her. Erza indicates a random direction – at least it seemed random to me – with her gauntleted hand.

"In roughly that direction, on the outskirts of the city." She replied shortly. Huh, that's odd. Why would he live on the very edge of town when Fairy Tail is like, smack dab in the middle of the city? I guess I won't ask further. Erza scares me. I think I've said that already.

So we end up walking in silence all the way to the edge of town, where the stone streets gave way to green grasses and tall trees. Tucked between the trunks of a multitude of trees was Natsu's place. How to describe it…it's a run down shack made of wood and stone. And half covered in moss. So these are to be my lodgings while I'm here? Black widow spiders, here we come. I swear to God, if I see even ONE spider…I'm burning the place to the ground.

"It's very um…homey…" I comment lamely. Erza doesn't respond to me and instead approaches the door. I think she's going to knock…wait the fuck? She just opened it and walked in like she owns the place. "Um…shouldn't you knock…?"

Once we are inside, I see that Natsu actually kept the inside of his house looking somewhat neat…and by somewhat I mean the equivalent of a typical college male's dorm. In other words, shit has been tossed every which way. However, I don't see any sign of Natsu or his little cat minion.

"What am I going to do with him…" Erza sighs, resting her forehead in her armored palm. "Wait here." With that, she leaves the house and shuts the door, plunging me into complete darkness.

So…what the hell do I do now? I'm alone in a moss-covered house that is probably infested with all sorts of insects. I wonder if they have magical insects that can…oh shit now I have goose bumps. Suddenly, every time one of the hairs on my arms or legs tickles my skin, I feel like insects are all over me. Dammit, where's a light?!

I walk across the floor, my legs brushing against something that feels like clothes. I stretch my arms out in front of me, looking for a light switch or even just the door so I can get some sunlight into here. Wait a minute; this world probably doesn't have light switches. So how the fuck do I…son of a bitch! Stars cloud my vision as I walk directly into a wall. I back away, holding my head. Who the hell put a wall there?

I can see some dim light around the silhouette of a corner, so I navigate in that direction, nearly tripping over nightstand as I do so. It turns out the light comes from a window in the kitchen. Thank god. I sit down at the table and gaze out the window into the forest…that creeps me the fuck out. Then again, anything at night is practically the definition of sketchy.

I was only sitting there for a few minutes when I start hearing distressed sounds from outside. I turn my head, searching for the source. Eventually, the sound grew close enough for me to identify the source as Natsu's pained yelps. Suddenly I have a very good idea what is about to come through that door.

As I expected, Erza smashes the door open and walks inside, dragging a very traumatized Natsu. Happy was flying in the air above him, laughing at his plight and praising Erza. What a heartless cat! That's hilarious.

"Kerrich will be staying here with you for the time being, Natsu," Erza finally saw fit to explain to the dragonslayer. Before he can even say a word, she's already speaking again. "I hope you'll get along well with him."

"W-wait! Erza!" Natsu calls after her as she leaves, still lying on the floor. I am just speechless, both with shock at how abrupt she is, and at how hilarious this situation is. Natsu then adjusts himself into a sitting position, glaring out after the redhead with a petulant look on his face. "That Erza! Always bossing me around!"

"That's Erza for you!" Happy chimes in. I clear my throat to announce my presence. They whirl around, as if they were just now noticing that I was here. Natsu brightens, pointing at me with a look of recognition on his youthful face.

"Hey I know you! You're that Ferret guy!" he exclaims excitedly. My right eye starts twitching a split second after he finishes talking.

"That…ferret…guy…" I can only repeat. I swear, if this was an anime, I think I would have that little sweat drop symbol they always use.

"Yeah I met you in the guild! So Erza wants you to stay here?" Natsu continues. I let out an exasperated sigh.

"'Erza wants' is definitely the phrase. I didn't want to bother you two, but she wouldn't hear of it," I reply. My answer earns a knowing chuckle from the both of them.

"Aye! That's how it goes. If Erza wants something, she usually gets it!" Happy is the first to reply. I add my amusement to theirs. Natsu isn't so bad, I guess. At least we agree on the horror that is Erza.

Natsu suddenly turns around and walks the other direction, a wide grin on his face. "Oh well! Now, time to find you a blanket or something," the…what the fuck do I even call him? Redhead? Or Pinkhead? Screw it, I'll just call him 'wizard' for now.

While Natsu is looking around, the wizard presses a hand to a weird orb looking thing, which lights up at his touch. The light is bright enough to light the whole house, but it doesn't hurt my eyes to look at it. Huh, I guess in this world, magic can be used for anything.

Happy is looking through a cupboard in the kitchen, and judging by the expression on his face, he's not happy with what he's finding. "Natsu! Where did you put all the fish? I can't find any!" the cat practically screams, flying around like a maniac. I hear Natsu reply from the other room, but its too indistinct for me to make out.

Happy lands and walks into the room where Natsu is. "What? I didn't hear you!" Natsu growls and pokes his head up out of the pile of junk he's looking through.

"I said it's gone! I fed it to you already, remember?!" the wizard snaps, and then goes back to rummaging. I move over to his couch and sit there, feeling awkward. I'm a bit socially awkward, in case you couldn't tell.

"We're out of FISH?!" Happy's voice grows louder. Irritated, I rest my head in my hands and hope that the abnormal blue cat will eventually shut up.

Natsu suddenly exclaims loudly, causing me to jump in surprise. I turn my head to see him pulling a futon out from underneath a pile of miscellaneous junk, scattering it everywhere. I raise an eyebrow, wondering if that was what I was expected to sleep on.

"Oi, Ferret! How's this?" Natsu looks at me, holding the futon. I can feel a vein twitching in my head in irritation.

"It's…Kerrich," I correct him with a disbelieving tone. Natsu shrugs and waits for the answer to his question. I sigh and peer at the futon. It's relatively clean, despite where Natsu found it, so I guess it would do for today. "Yeah, I guess I can use that."

Next thing I know, Natsu fucking tosses the futon at me, and I end up underneath it on the floor. "Hey, don't just toss it!" I can hear Happy laughing hysterically as I extricate myself from the futon and lay it on the floor.

"Well, that's that! Come on Happy, it's time for bed!" Natsu quickly change to the next subject. My God, he has the attention span of a gnat! Happy stops laughing and glares at Natsu, but considering he's a cat, it just looks oddly cute.

"But what about my fish?" the cat whines, following Natsu up the stairs. I sigh and realize that I'm just going to be sleeping down here. I guess Natsu didn't really get that many visitors, otherwise he'd have informed me where I'm going to sleep. Oh well. I flop down on the futon, which is more comfortable than I expected, thankfully.

"I'll catch you some in the morning!" I can hear Natsu reply to Happy.

"But I want some now!"

"So needy!"

I laugh a little at their exchange, and soon silence fills the house. I shift and sigh, until at last I feel comfortable. This is my second night here in this world. It's surprising how quickly I've adapted to the change in circumstances. Two days ago my only worry was getting my English paper done before the deadline, and now I'm worrying about whether or not I can learn magic.

I'm still not convinced that I didn't hit my head or something during the storm and I'm in a coma, dreaming all of this. Or I could go with the whole Priscilla put LSD in my drink theory. Right. Because she totally had access to LSD.

I can feel myself drifting off to sleep. I'm not sure that everything will still be here in the morning, but I guess whatever happens, happens. I can't really do anything by worrying about it. I shut my eyes and smile slightly, until at last I fall into slumber.

* * *

Almost immediately after I shut my eyes, I'm dreaming again. I look around and find myself standing in the middle of my college dorm once again. I sigh, mentally preparing myself for the rush of emotions that I know I'm going to feel.

At least this time, I knew it was coming. If I go by the theory that I'm actually astral projecting, then my initial starting point must always be in this world for some reason.

All right, before I go to see Makarov in the other world, I'm going to go and check on my parents. I remember that my house is a hell of a long way from campus, but this time I'm more prepared. I am currently standing on the bridge that overlooked the road that exited campus. I'm in my astral form, so I should be able to withstand this. I turn and jump off of the bridge and land on the asphalt, bending my knees to absorb the impact. Thankfully, I don't feel much pain at all.

I start running down the road, noticing that like before, I can run faster than a normal human can. I go into a sprint, and now the landscape is flying by. I find myself keeping up with the cars driving by on the road. I grin slightly. That's fucking awesome. I see a motorcyclist turning into the highway that eventually led to my house, so I run up to him and run alongside him, easily keeping pace with the fast vehicle. I look at the brand of the vehicle while I run to see that it's a Ninja. I scoff, as its definitely not my favorite brand.

Even though I'm running slightly faster than the average car, this will take me too long to get home if I run at this speed. Actually, that gives me an idea. Unlike my last dream excursions, I know how to tap into my magic power. I do so, and then my speed increases dramatically. I zoom down the highway like the mother-fucking Flash, and turn into the exit where my house is located.

Another few seconds pass, and then I'm standing before my house. I smile bitterly when I see that it is exactly as I remembered. I walk onto the driveway and open the keypad next to the garage door. As I key in the password, I stop, and then lower my hands. My family would find it rather odd if the garage door were to open on its own. Actually, I don't need to open it that way.

Chuckling a little at the situation, I walk through the garage door and into the house proper. As I expected, my father is lying on the couch and working on server maintenance for his job, while the TV is playing a documentary on Greek history. At least he hasn't changed much.

My brother isn't here, because he is still at college. I can't see my mother either, but I understand why once I look at the clock. She's at work right now. I take a quick walk around the house and then I leave again, satisfied. Life had gone on without me, as I'd expected.

All right, I think I'm done here. I focus my mind on the Fairy Tail guildhall, and like before, the world swirls away, to be replaced by the area that I'd imagined. Now, I'm standing just inside the main room. There's no one in the room except for Mirajane, who is cleaning the bar, and Makarov, who is sitting on the counter with an expectant look on his face.

"Hey, I'm here," I call to him. He doesn't exhibit any response to my hail, and I sigh. I guess the fact that the outside world couldn't see or hear me remained true. So, how to get his attention?

"Master, are you sure he's coming?" Mirajane asks Makarov tentatively. The Master sighs and looks around, probably looking for me.

"I don't believe he would lie," Makarov replies, and then the both of them lapse into silence.

Well, I could break the table, but it took long enough to fix them the first time, so that's out of the question. Could I lift something? With that in mind, I move over to one of the tables and attempt to grab it. Surprisingly, I can. I grin and hook my arms underneath its surface and easily heft it above my head. I am loving the added strength this astral form gives me.

The second the table starts moving, Mirajane and Makarov both stare at it in shock. Mirajane drops the rag she's holding, and Makarov's eyes widen. "Kerrich, is that you?" the master asks quietly.

"Yeah, I'm here," I reply, and then I remember that he can't hear me. God, this is a pain in the ass. I walk in a circle, still carrying the table. Maybe that counts for acknowledgement.

"Tap into your magic power, and then try replying," Makarov suddenly says, as if he understands my plight. Actually, that's a good idea. Back in my world, I used my magic to speed up, so maybe I could use it here to talk.

The second I call my magic, something strange happens. A dim cyan glow comes into being, seemingly coming from nowhere. I can see Makarov and Mirajane orient their gazes on me, so the glow must be coming from me. I look down at myself, and to my shock, I can actually see myself, though not in the usual sense. I'm nothing more than an outline formed by extremely thin burning lines of cyan flame. It's like I'm an extremely detailed wire frame. Okay, this sounds confusing. To clarify, when I look at my hands, I can see the lines forming up the main outline of my hand, and then tinier lines form the smaller details, such as the creases in my palm and the whites of my fingernails.

"Whoa…" I say to myself, and my voice comes out strange, almost otherworldly. Mirajane and Makarov show a facial response to my words, so they can probably hear me. Mirajane chuckles despite the situation at my surprise. Makarov grunts to himself and scratches his chin, looking at my new form.

"Interesting. Perhaps you were actually telling the truth, then," the master remarks. I nod slowly, now confident in my own existence.

"Yeah, I guess this is my astral form. Although I can't use it when I'm awake, strangely enough." I'm still looking over my own body. I look so cool like this. It's like I'm a computer-generated entity.

"That's not so strange. If I remember correctly, that's how all Astral Wizards start out. When did these roaming dreams of yours start?" the master questions me. Well, if I were to be completely honest, I started having them almost immediately after I entered this world, the first one happening while I was in the hospital and passed out. The one where I flipped a shit in my classroom.

"Well, two days ago, roughly. As soon as I entered Magnolia for the first time," I rephrase my thoughts rather convincingly, if I may say so myself. I don't know if they bought it, but hey.

"I see." Makarov responds and hops down off of the counter. The little man starts pacing, clearly thinking hard about something. I watch him, growing restless. How long is he going to do that?

"Well, I do not know where any of the Astral Wizards are, but I do know someone who would," the master finally says, stopping his pacing and glancing at me with a pensive expression. That seems hopeful. Perhaps this person we're going to see can find someone to teach me how to use this magic. And maybe I won't be as hopeless at it as I was with Card Magic.

"Master, you should do that in the morning then. It's getting awfully late," Mirajane points out. The master sighs, but he can clearly see the sense in her words.

"I guess so. Kerrich, you should go back to bed and get some rest. Training is never easy," Makarov reminds me. Well that's a good idea, but there's just a slight problem.

"How?" I ask him simply. Makarov blinks and stares at me, completely not understanding my question. "How do I go back to sleep? Every night, my body ejects my astral self, and I don't know how to go back."

"You need magic power to stay in that form, don't you?" Makarov asks me after I finish explaining. I blink, and then think a little. I suppose to be visible and audible, I do need to use magic power. And I suppose while invisible I still felt a drain on my fatigue, which is the same as my magic power if I recall correctly.

"I suppose I do."

"Then all you must do is cut off the flow of magic, and I'm sure you will return to your body," the master advises. Well, I know to stop using magic now, so let's go ahead and do that. I would like a good night's sleep for the first time in forever. I concentrate, and soon enough I can feel slightly faint. Then my vision gets cloudy, and before long my world goes completely black.

* * *

"Kerrich! Wake up…you sleep like a rock," is the first thing I hear as the sun's rays fall through the window and onto my face. My eyelids twitch when I feel a paw jab my cheek. I roll over and moan, wanting to go back to sleep. However, the paw jabs me in the back of the head this time, and my eyes fly open. I sit up and glare at the offending blue cat that is staring at me with an innocent look on his face.

"I swear, I'm going to pull out your whiskers if you wake me like that again, cat!" I snap, but I make sure he knows I'm joking. However, Happy just laughs and covers his mouth with both paws, so I guess no offense was dealt.

"We're about to head to the guild!" Happy tells me even as I get up and stretch. I feel oddly refreshed, which makes sense, considering I've been expending magic power in my sleep for the past few days.

"Oh good, Garet's awake!" Natsu remarks, walking out of the kitchen with a piece of bread in his mouth. I open my mouth to yell at him, but then I settle with a strangled sounding sigh. Happy is now flying above me, laughing at my expense.

"It's…Kerrich…" I again remind him, but the wizard is already moving. He throws open the front door and gestures for me to follow him. I do so, with Happy hovering just behind me. Once we're outside, Natsu rushes forward with a huge grin on his face.

"Come on Happy, let's go do a job! To the guild!" Natsu fucking sprints all the way towards the city at a pace that I can't even hope to match, with Happy flying right past me matching the dragonslayer's speed.

"Aye siiiir!" the cat squeaks, and he too disappears from my vision. I'm left just in front of Natsu's house, with a no doubt hilarious expression on my face.

I just…what even. This guild makes no sense. I swear, I don't even know what's going on anymore. What the fuck am I supposed to do? Should I just take all this craziness in stride? Fairy Tail is fucked up beyond belief. I sigh again and start walking towards the city myself, albeit at a much slower speed.

Though I suppose it isn't completely bad. Everyone seems nice, to an extent. Erza was frightening, but she did get me a place to stay. Cana treated me to two meals even though I didn't ask her to, and Mirajane and Makarov have done nothing but try to help me. So I guess my feelings towards this messed up guild are mostly positive…except for Gajeel. Fuck that guy.

While lost in my thoughts, my feet carried me seemingly on their own to the Fairy Tail guildhall. The moment I arrived there, I can already hear loud voices and laughter coming from inside. I shake my head, not even wanting to know what's going on inside. I push open the door to see Natsu and Gray trying to beat each other's lights out.

"Do you mind?! It's not even noon yet and you're already making noise!" Cana shrieks at them, yet she is pretty much ignored. It's only when Erza walks over and slams her fists into each of their heads at the same time, causing them to yell out in pain and nurse their heads.

"If you're going to fight, take it outside! This is a respectable place!" Erza snaps at them. Gray and Natsu look like frightened children, gazing up at her with wide eyes. They both nod frantically, but immediately start glaring at one another the moment Erza turns her back.

"Welcome back, Kerrich!" Mirajane is the first to notice my arrival, waving cheerfully over. I give her a smile and wave myself.

I walk up to the bar, doing my best to ignore the fact that Gajeel is munching on some iron bits right next to where I'm standing. I note that he doesn't even spare me a second glance. Jackass.

I don't see the master around, which surprises me because I thought we were leaving soon. I express this to Mirajane.

"Oh, the master? He's busy getting ready, I believe. He should be down in a few minutes," she reassures me. Our conversation seems to get the attention of several other guild members around us.

"Oi, are you going somewhere?" Gray leans his back against the counter next to me. I suppress a sigh when I see that he's missing his shirt for some reason.

"Yeah, I'm off to get some real training," I reply proudly. Hopefully it'd be all like, Dragon Ball style and I'd be godly when I get back. Yeah right. Like my strength would ever rival any of the characters from that ridiculous, amazing show.

"Gray, your clothes," Cana points out when she notices the wizard stepping out of his pants. Gray looks down and immediately freaks out, apparently not even noticing his own actions. I press my face into my palm. This guild is fucked up beyond belief.

"Training, you say?" Erza is the next to overhear me. I tense up, the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. Goddamn, she looks like she's glaring at me. What did I do now? Please don't hit me.

I nod nervously under her gaze. Finally, she smiles at me. "Good. We will have to go on a job together at some point upon your return." I gulp, but I feel better since she's smiling. She's actually quite pretty, but I don't have a death wish, so I don't think I'll be trying anything. Not that I'd try anything with any of the girls in this guild. They just aren't Priscilla, after all.

"That sounds fun," I reply. Next, Natsu joins us by the bar, and I note with some amusement that the presence of so many people nearby is increasingly annoying Gajeel. Natsu squeezes himself between Gajeel and me.

"Yeah, go and get strong! Then we gotta have a fight!" the dragonslayer proclaims enthusiastically. I'm about to reply something along the lines of 'I don't want to die, so no' but then Gajeel loses his temper and stands up, his chair falling over.

"Would you move already? You're all getting on my nerves! Especially you, Natsu!" Gajeel roars. Natsu turns around and slams his head into Gajeel's, a comical look of anger on his face.

"Huh? You wanna say that again?!" the dragonslayer shoots back. I can already tell what's going to happen, so I edge away slowly.

"You trying to start something?!" Gajeel responds just as angrily, pushing his own head against Natsu's. Next thing I know, they're exchanging punches. My god, these people will fight for the stupidest reasons.

I let out an exasperated sigh. My utterance earns a chuckle from Mirajane. Erza looks like she's going to interfere, so I remove myself from their vicinity and walk over to the stairs that led to the upper floor.

I spot Makarov walking down the stairs, dressed in white flowing robes, with golden trims. A strange medallion like symbol is depicted on the back, with a cross engraved on its front. Odd. I wonder what it means.

"Ah, Kerrich. Are you ready to leave?" the master questioned me.

"Yeah, I am. I don't really have any possessions, so I guess I'm always ready.' I reply. I'm really excited about this. I've already said before how amazing it would be to be strong with magic, and I meant it. I can't wait to see what kind of guy will be training me.

"Good answer. Now come on. We have quite a distance ahead of us." Makarov begins walking towards the exit. I follow him eagerly.

As we reach the exit, I hear Mirajane bidding us farewell. A split second later, I hear a crash and then an angry yell from Gray.

"Natsu, you son of a bitch! You'll pay for that!" I sigh again as I hear the ice wizard screaming.

"My Gray is the strongest! Get him!" Juvia's is the next voice I hear. Shaking my head, I follow Makarov out the door.

"Such energy. I envy them," Makarov comments with a smile. Yeah, right. Because beating the crap out of one another is totally the ideal use of energy. Still, he has a point, seeing as he's pretty old.

Oh well. Looks like its traveling time. Hopefully we don't run into any bandits this time around. I still can't use any real magic. Unless I'm sleeping. But I can't really fall asleep during a fight, can I? Then again, I guess I could if I was knocked unconscious, but that wouldn't work for me. Pain hurts, you know.

* * *

We traveled towards the eastern end of the city. Before you ask how I know which direction's east, I'll tell you that it's because of Makarov. He said we were heading towards the eastern forest, so it stands to reason that we would also be heading east.

So yeah, the gate we took to leave the city was not the one I arrived through. This one practically spat us out directly into the forest.

"So who are we going to see, exactly?" I feel the need to ask, because Makarov said that we weren't going to someone who could train me just yet, but instead to someone who might know another Astral Wizard.

"An old friend of mine. She lives out here in the forest alone," Makarov replies shortly. Huh. I wonder what kind of person this woman is. She's probably as old as Makarov, given his age and his description of her as an "old friend."

She's probably senile. Hah. She lives alone in a forest. Something has to be wrong with her. Or I'm being an ignorant fuck. One of the two.

We lapse into silence after that. I take a look around. I'm seeing some of the strangest animals in here. Like, one time we passed a little pond, and sitting on a branch were these blue amphibious looking creatures that had shells. With amusement, I notice that they look a little like Squirtles. That's not even the best part. Later, we pass these pink reptiles that look like Stegosaurus, even down to the plates on its back. Except for the fact that they are fucking pink. And the plates are rainbow colored. What the actual fuck.

It's actually really humid in this forest, even though there's not a cloud in the sky. So I'm sweating after long, but thankfully I'm not one of those guys who sweats a river. However, I'm definitely uncomfortable.

The trees in this place are fucking huge. Like, you could build a house in one of them. It's Ellesmera from that one book series I read back in my world. Of course, it's not like there's actually going to be a house in a tree here. That would just be ridiculous...

"We're here," Makarov suddenly stops in the middle of the path, and points at one of the trees in front of us. I look forward, following his finger, until my eyes rest upon the tree he's pointing at. When I see the door set into the roots of the tree, my eye starts twitching. Are you fucking kidding me? She actually made a house in a tree? That settles it. This world is fucking ridiculous. I mean, come on! There has to be so many things wrong with living in a tree. First of all, she'd have to carve it out in the first place. And even if that's done, there could be termites, ants, or other pests that make their homes in trees. And what about woodpeckers? What if one just pecked a hole in her wall?

I finally realize one thing that explains all of those problems away. Magic. How did she make a house in a tree? Fucking magic.

"Allow me to warn you, she can be rather…difficult," Makarov interrupts my incredulous thoughts all of a sudden. I raise a single eyebrow in response. I bet she's difficult; she made a house in a fucking tree to get away from people!

"What do you mean by that?" I ask curiously. Makarov sighs and gives me a worried look.

"Just…let me do the talking," is his response. Huh. Well that doesn't sound good. Oh well. I'm good at keeping my mouth shut.

Makarov walks up to the door and knocks on it gingerly, and then steps back. Huh, if I didn't know better, I'd say he looks timid.

The door opens almost immediately after that to reveal an oddly dressed older woman wearing an unreadable expression on her face. She cracks the tiniest of smiles upon seeing Makarov, but then she adopts a full-blown on her face scowl when she sees me. I unconsciously take a step back. What the hell did I do to earn that kind of look?

"Makarov…" she finally says in a rough voice. She doesn't seem like she's going to say more. I knew this woman was going to be strange, but I didn't think she'd be rude as well.

"Porlyusica. It's good to see you," the master greets her cordially. What the fuck kind of name is that? Porl…purl…pleshbablaha I can't evenpronounce that! Yeah, I'll just let him do the talking. If she asks me to say her name I'm going to die. Makarov starts looking all awkward when the woman doesn't say any more, so he continues. "So…may I come in?"

"If you must," Porlyusica replies tersely and steps aside so we can walk in. I give a small sigh in relief as I feel level floor beneath me once more. I hate forest paths, because of all those roots and fallen leaves I have to walk through. I'll have you know those roots can kill a person.

The old woman sets aside a single wooden stool by a small table, which Makarov sits on gratefully. I stand there awkwardly, noticing with some annoyance that she's not setting aside a chair for me. What sort of host only caters to half of their guests? Apparently she does.

"What is it?" Porlyusica asks. Wow, straight to the point. I suppose I should have expected her to be socially inept, seeing as she's a hermit and all.

"Kerrich here happens to possess magic of the rarest kind," Makarov decides to get to the point as well, gesturing over at me. The older woman turns her gaze to me, and I gulp slightly. She's looking at me as if I'm a bug or something. "Have you heard of Astral Magic?"

"I have," is her reply, though I can tell she's surprised. Her eyes widened ever so slightly, and she was now looking at me in a different way. Well, it's better than being an insect, I guess. "Are you telling me he's mastered Astral Magic?"

"Well," I begin, trying to break the truth to her. I actually really suck, because I can't use it unless I'm asleep, and even then I don't know all of what it can do. However, I can't speak further because Makarov cuts across me.

"Not quite. That's what I'm here for. We're trying to find someone who can instruct him in its use," the master specifies. Porlyusica sighs and shakes her head, her arms crossed.

"I can't use that magic, so I do not see how I can help you. You would be better off asking actual Astral Wizards," she regretfully informed the master. Makarov shook his head.

"I wasn't asking you to train him. All I need to know is where I can find these Astral Wizards. I know you've been in contact with some of them."

"I was in contact with _one _of them," Porlyusica corrects him harshly. "His name is Setara. I believe you already know of him."

I looked at Makarov, and yeah, it looks like he knows this Setara guy. His eyes are all wide and he looked like he was about to freak the fuck out. With that reaction, I wonder how awesome this guy is.

"Setara…!?" Makarov looks down at his feet, and then at me with a worried look. "Are you sure you don't know where any others are?"

Porlyusica shakes her head. Makarov sighs and turns fully to me. "Kerrich, how serious are you about learning this magic?"

That's a good question. I'm only pursuing this magic because it doesn't seem like I can learn any others. But, if that's true, and Astral Magic is the only way I can get stronger…then it's my only choice. I need this magic to surpass Priscilla, so that I can look her in the eye when I at last join her, wherever she's gone. I want to put her training to use, as it's the only way I know to honor her memory. In that case, I'm so damn serious; I don't think I've been more serious about anything in my life.

"I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I backed down now," I honestly told the both of them. Makarov looks slightly surprised, though mostly he looks even more worried by that response.

"That's well said, but I don't think you know what you're getting into," the master continues to try and convince me. I don't reply, choosing instead to continue staring with determination into his eyes. Finally, Makarov sighs. "Very well. Porlyusica?"

"I understand. Makarov, you can find him southeast of Fiore, past Galuna Island and closer to Minstrel." Porlyusica tells the master. Makarov nods, and ushers me out the door.

So I'm standing back out in the forest again, while Makarov is saying something to Porlyusica, though I can't make it out. Eventually Makarov leaves the house, and the door shuts behind him.

"Let's get back to Magnolia. From there, you can take the train to Hargeon, and then a boat to Setara's island," he informs me, and we start walking back the way we came. "You'll be on your own for most of that, but you shouldn't have much trouble getting there."

I see. So I'll be on my own for quite some time. That's fine, I do better on my own anyway. I doubt any of the guild members would go with me anyway. I wonder what this Setara guy is like, if he gets that much of a reaction out of Makarov.

The closer we get to Magnolia, the more my curiosity gets, so I decide to ask. I mean, I want to break the silence somehow. Makarov hasn't said a word since we left Porlyusica's, and it's starting to freak me out.

"So this Setara guy…why does he freak you out so much?" Makarov's gaze shoots to me the moment those words leave my mouth. God, it's like cursing in a church the way he keeps staring at me.

"Do you know what dark guilds are?" Makarov begins simply with a question.

"Not a clue." I know what guilds are, thanks to that one nurse. They are wizards who band together and take jobs for the betterment of all, I believe. Are dark guilds like, the opposite?

"They are guilds that were either thrown out of the league by the wizard council, or formed independently by rogue wizards. They complete jobs that are not sanctioned by the council, such as assassination or smuggling." Makarov explains. Figures. With a title like dark guild, of course they're evil. Seriously, what was I expecting to hear?

"What, and does anyone do anything about them? Like this council?" The council sounds like it might be the government for this world. Makarov shrugs.

"You could say so. Dark guilds are usually very strong and/or very cunning, in order to avoid being wiped out. As for taking care of them, normal guilds are sometimes requested to destroy them." Awesome, so it's like search and destroy, or something. At least being a guild member won't be boring, if we can face off against dark guilds.

"Has Fairy Tail destroyed any?"

"Plenty. For example, we recently teamed up with three other guilds…wait, technically two other guilds since the fourth one didn't actually exist…" Makarov starts to reply. Wait what the fuck? A guild that doesn't exist?

"So we teamed up with Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and Cait Shelter-which doesn't exist—and took down Oracion Seis not that long ago. They were one of the strongest guilds in the world, and it was a tough fight, but we did it. Then there was Eisenwald, but that was much less exciting." The master finishes.

Goddamn, did I mention this guild is messed up? Well, I'm actually rather impressed. So Oracion Seis were some big shots or something, and Fairy Tail wiped them out in an epic battle? That…sounds awesome. I'm really glad I joined, if things will get epic every once in a while. Too bad my phone is dead. I would listen to my music and fight at the same time. Imagine this: fighting another wizard on a boat while listening to the Lonely Island. Best. Fight. Ever.

"Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that all Dark Guilds originally began with one, singular guild. This guild, called Blood Scourge, was at the time the number one guild in Fiore," Makarov begins his story as we progress though the forest. I listened eagerly, because I'm sure this story has a point of some sort. Though I must say, Blood Scourge? What a menacing name. Admittedly though, it does sound more intimidating than Fairy Tail. Sorry, just telling it like it is.

"It started when Blood Scourge's guildmaster, Zandros, was requested by an archaeologist to recover a certain magical artifact located in an extensive cave system on an unidentified landmass due north of Fiore. It was rumored that the landmass was inhabited by incredibly powerful beings, whose nature was not known. Thus, Zandros planned to take all of his S-Rank wizards with him."

"I'm guessing it wasn't that easy," I conjecture. Makarov nods his head in agreement.

"The council heard of this venture, and forbade it immediately, due to unsafe request parameters. Zandros went to argue at the Fiore Council building. He protested that it was against his principles to drop a request after it had been accepted, and that his power was more than enough to ensure his safety. Yet even so the council refused to budge." Makarov continued. Is it just me, or is this sounding an awful lot like the plot of KOTOR II? Dark Side generator? Eh? Hehe…I guess not.

"Then, Zandros did the unthinkable. For the first time in history, a guild went against the council. Even without approval, Zandros took his entire guild and went across the sea to the cave system. The council therefore declared Blood Scourge to no longer be a part of the league, marking the first dark guild in history."

I thought I was supposed to be learning about Setara. Instead, it seems like I'm getting a history lesson. Though I do find it interesting. I always like the stories about those who dare to go against their government for the greater good. Though not exactly the greater good, Zandros was defending his principles, and I guess I can understand that.

"Several years passed, and Blood Scourge never returned. They slowly began to turn into nothing but a memory, and another guild soon took its place as number one in Fiore. However, ten years since their disappearance, Zandros returned, with the entirety of his guild behind him. The magical artifact that they had gone to claim had altered them for the worse, warping their personalities into sadistic, bloodthirsty mockeries of what they used to be. Their strength had increased several fold, so that even when the number one guild went to fight them, even their rank and file were strong enough to take them on." Okay, this is sounding more and more like KOTOR. Malak and Revan returned as Sith, with the power of the star forge…all right fine I'll let him finish his story. Still, the similarities are cracking me up.

"Were they ever defeated?" I ask curiously. I mean, they probably were, seeing as the council is still in place today.

"Yes, but it took the entire league of guilds as well as the council members themselves to do it. One by one, the individual councils members took down each of Blood Scourge's strongest mages, though half of them were lost in the process. Soon, only the chairman and three others were left, and only Zandros himself remained standing. Zandros proved to be so strong, that nothing the council threw at him could touch him. Therefore, there was only one option left. The three remaining council members gave nearly all of their magical power to the chairman, leaving them on the brink of death. The chairman himself executed the most powerful sealing magic in existence, the Great Seal, and used his own life force to create chains that would bind Zandros for all time."

"This story is…surprisingly epic," I remark, though Makarov doesn't seem to appreciate my humor.

"By the end of the conflict, the council was nearly decimated, while Blood Scourge itself was completely destroyed. All of its members were killed in the conflict, save for two. Zandros, who was sealed, and Setara, the dark guild's ace." Makarov finally finishes his story, turning his eyes onto me. He looks very grim. "Now you know what you are getting into."

I stand there, blinking, nearly going into shock by what I just heard. Setara was a member of the first dark guild in history? And I'm going to train under him? Dread fills my body, and all I can say is one word that quite accurately describes this situation.

"Shit."

* * *

And finally, after a hell of a long time, I managed to pump out another chapter. It's about freaking time, too. Well, it's not like anyone cares. God knows no one reads this. Oh well, I'll talk about it anyway.

So, learning magic for Kerrich isn't going so well. He utterly sucks at everything. Except for astral projecting. That's going to be his magic, in case you couldn't tell.

But I had writer's block for the longest time on this chapter, until I downloaded the Fairy Tail Movie soundtrack. It inspired me to keep writing, and finally came up with what I needed to spur Kerrich's growth.

So the first dark guild? Well, neither the anime nor the manga ever specified what the first one was called, so I decided it was fair game. So I made my own guild. And by doing that, I've just outlined two potential arcs. So, after this chapter, the Astral Projection Arc will start.

Also, I finally believe I've decided on a reason for Full Moon and Fairy Tail to eventually clash. But I'm not telling! Bleh!

Well, and since no one has reviewed since Queen of Narnia49, I don't have to write any shoutouts! *Forever Alone face*

Keelah Se'lai,

The Proud Quarian,

Terran34


	8. Blake vs Wyvern

I feel like ranting about the lack of reviews, but then I'd just look like an ass. So I'll just keep writing, in the hopes that maybe somebody will take notice…and leave a review. 3 reviews for seven chapters. Bah!

* * *

Not a sound penetrated the velvet curtain of darkness that engulfed the three wizards, who slumbered peacefully in the comforts of their own room. The dark form of Charon stood stalwart atop his boat in the exact center of the room, his oar clenched in his skeletal hand.

At last, the first ray of sunlight shined in through the window and onto the wizards' faces. Blake moaned and rolled over, continuing his sleep, while Thorn merely slept on, seemingly ignoring the intruding light. As for Victor, he woke instantly and threw back the covers.

The dragonslayer stood and strode silently over to the window. Placing his hand on the windowsill, Victor peered out through the glass onto the rest of the village. It was then he noticed something strange.

It was utterly silent and dead in the village. All he could hear was the quiet sounds of his sleeping companions. He narrowed his eyes, finding it suspicious that he couldn't hear the sounds of crickets or the telltale footsteps of the inn staff. Surely there would be those that were forced to work night shifts to accommodate late night guests, but Victor heard nothing. It was like the village had suddenly become a ghost town.

Victor turned around, and his gaze fell upon Charon. It seemed to be staring at him, as the opening of its hood was focused on him. Victor growled quietly, but Charon didn't react. The entity then began dissipating into the air, until at last it had disappeared from sight.

"Freaks me the fuck out," Victor muttered to himself. He looked back at his companions to find them still asleep. He decided that it was better to wake them now, so that they could get moving sooner rather than later.

Victor moved over to Blake and shoved the wizard roughly. Sputtering indignantly, Blake regained consciousness and rubbed his eyes.

"What the hell, man?" the wizard protested irritably. Victor ignored him and proceeded to Thorn. He did not presume to use the same method with her, as he preferred to keep his life.

"Thorn. Wake up," Victor demanded in a loud voice. Thorn's eyes flickered open immediately revealing her crimson pupils. They dilated to adjust to the lighting. When she began moving, Victor retreated to give her some space.

Once everyone was up and fully awake, Thorn led the way out of the room and down the stairs, where the tavern was located. Surprisingly, the tavern was completely empty. There wasn't even anyone standing at the counter.

"Where is everyone?" Blake questioned suspiciously.

"Good question," Thorn commented, worming her way through the closely packed tables towards the door. Victor followed her. He sniffed the air, a distinctive scent filling his nostrils.

"I smell blood. Lots of it," the dragonslayer alerted them. Blake immediately withdrew his leather bands from his pocket and wrapped them around his fist, clearly expecting trouble.

"Do you think the mutant last night was too much for them?" the wizard suggested. Victor considered, but then shook his head.

"That can't be it. I didn't see any bodies in the streets when I was looking out the window," the dragonslayer disagreed. Blake looked reassured, but not by much.

Thorn led them out into the streets, looking for anyone to answer their questions. However, no matter where they looked, the town was empty. The doors of the houses were left hanging open, and windows were shattered and broken.

"Something happened last night," Thorn deduced. She then looked at Victor, who was still sniffing the air. "Where's that blood scent coming from, Victor?"

"Not anywhere close. I think its coming from the gorge," the dragonslayer informed her. Thorn stepped aside, allowing Victor to take the lead.

They moved in silence after that, following the dragonslayer's nose. No matter where they went, there were no signs of life.

At last, Victor led them to the opposite side of the village, which ended just a few meters short of the edge of the gorge. Now that they were so close to the edge, Victor could see the awesome scale of the Earth's Abyss.

"Mother of God," Victor gasped, looking over the edge of the massive gorge. It stretched infinitely to the horizon to the north and south, and extended for at least a half mile away from him. Looking down, he could see a huge array of scaffoldings and cave entrances located against either side of the walls of the gorge, with many bridges connecting the two sides. It was easy to see the evidence of the mining business. However, they were now abandoned and quiet.

"You see what I mean? This place is awesome!" Blake exclaimed. He leaned a little to close to the edge, and overbalanced. He yelped frantically and wheeled his arms. He was about to tumble in when Thorn grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him back. She then smacked him lightly upside the head.

"Idiot. Don't get so excited," Thorn admonished him. Blake scratched the back of his head and laughed sheepishly.

"Looks like the only way down is this scaffolding," Victor pointed out. In front of them, juxtaposed to the edge was a wooden platform. Stairs were positioned at the edge as well, leading down the side of the cliff. Tools were scattered across the wooden surface, abandoned by their owners.

Suddenly, Victor heard running footsteps from behind him. He turned around wildly, his fists emanating black smoke aggressively. However, he let the smoke disappear when he saw Armand running towards them frantically, a desperate expression pasted on his aging face.

"Thank heavens you three are still all right!" Armand exclaimed gratefully, skidding to a stop in front of them, panting. "I was sure that the mutants had snatched you away too!"

"Calm down, sir. Start from the beginning. What happened last night, and where did the villagers go?" Thorn stepped in front of Victor, addressing the mayor directly. Tears squeezed out from the mayor's eyes.

"They came at night, like we expected. Instead of just one mutant, they brought an army! We were not prepared for an attack at that scale, and they slaughtered Commander Grym's forces and abducted the villagers, dragging them down into that accursed gorge!" Armand related tearfully, waving his arms around. Victor raised an eyebrow at his story, and looked around. He hadn't seen any blood yet, but he never looked back at the village entrance, so it was possible he could have missed the bodies.

"How did you escape?" Thorn questioned suspiciously. Armand pointed to his mansion.

"I hid in the vault with the body of my son and locked the door. That vault is impervious to any kind of magic, so I was saved from the calamity," Armand explained. Thorn's look of suspicion did not disappear, but she accepted his explanation.

"Do you know what they plan to do to your people?" Thorn continued to interrogate him. Armand shook his head.

"I know not, but I am sure it's nothing good! Please save my village! Please," the mayor begged, falling to his knees. Victor turned his head back towards the gorge, still smelling the pungent odor of blood.

"I don't think they're still," Victor began, but Armand's pleas grew more intense.

"I'm begging you," he pleaded. Thorn sighed, and turned back towards the gorge. She motioned for Blake and Victor to follow her, and she began walking towards the scaffolding.

"Nothing for it, I guess. Come on you two. We have a village to save," Thorn remarked. Victor grunted warily and walked after her. Blake was right next to them. Armand stood up from the ground and watched after them with a happy smile.

"Oh thank you! You have no idea how much you're helping us!" the mayor replied gratefully.

With that, Thorn descended the first set of stairs, followed by Victor and Blake. This marked their first descent into the gorge.

The reptilian smell returned, accompanied by an avian and bestial odor as well. Victor wrinkled his nose at the odd combination.

They continued descending the stairs until they reached the first hole in the side of the cliff. Victor peered inside to see a tunnel winding away into the darkness. He could smell fresh air from inside as well, indicating that the tunnel opened out somewhere further down.

"What about this passage?" Victor pointed out.

"I think we should travel further down a bit before we start taking passages," Thorn reasoned. Victor saw the sense in that, and thus they continued descending.

Finally, after passing another tunnel, they reached a dead end. They stood on the wooden platform and gazed downwards, seeing hundreds of other holes and scaffoldings scattered through the gorge.

"The tunnels we passed must branch out into different paths later on," Blake suggested. Victor sighed, and glanced at the tunnel that was at this platform.

"Yet there's no way of knowing which tunnel leads to our destination," Victor pointed out. Thorn nodded in agreement at that statement, and then sat down at the edge of the stairs. She looked like she was thinking hard.

"Guess we should split up, then." Blake decided. He started walking back up the stairs.

"That makes sense, but it will be dangerous, I'm sure," Thorn replied to that, standing back up again. She moved towards the nearest tunnel, grabbing a torch from the wall and walking inside. She turned around and gave Victor a wink. "I guess I'll see you at the bottom, wherever that is."

"Whatever," Victor muttered, looking away.

"Oi Thorn!" Blake called after the S-Rank wizard. She turned her head curiously. "Stay safe, will you?"

"You don't need to worry about me," Thorn commented with a cocky grin, and then she walked ahead into the darkness, disappearing from view. "But I appreciate it."

Victor and Blake were left alone on the platform. The absence of Thorn was readily felt by both of them, and an air of uneasiness fell over the two.

"Guess I'll take the top tunnel," Blake suggested. Victor shrugged and began walking up the stairs back to the second platform, where the middle tunnel was located. Blake saw him leaving and scurried up after him.

"I'm leaving," Victor announced once they reached the second platform. The dragonslayer walked into the darkness, not needing a torch thanks to his nature. The shadow to him was as light to any other.

"Be careful!" Victor heard Blake call from behind him. The dragonslayer scoffed, and continued on his way.

* * *

Blake was now alone on the platform, utter silence engulfing him. He shuddered. He couldn't remain still or he would lose it, so he walked up the last set of stairs to the first tunnel. He grabbed a torch and held it into the tunnel, lighting up the path ahead. Gulping, he stepped inside.

The path was winding and uneven, turning in and around itself multiple times until Blake soon lost all sense of direction. Thankfully, the path was linear, with no branching patterns just yet.

As he walked, he became aware of a set of tracks running along the floor of the tunnel, along with a small abandoned mine cart propelled by an SE plug. He considered using it, but then decided that the noise it would make would draw far too much attention to himself. The last thing he wanted was the mutants to notice his presence just yet.

Bypassing the cart, he continued down the passage. He soon began noticing veins of a dull yellow mineral in the wall. Curiously, he tapped the vein, and deduced that the mineral was iron ore by its texture and consistency. Blake thought it was odd that it hadn't been mined yet, seeing as how close it was to the surface. He noted several pickaxes scattered around the tunnel, abandoned by their owners.

"Well, I could get rich off of this," Blake joked, just to hear something other than the sound of his own breathing. His words echoed hollowly off of the walls, sounding warped and creepy when he heard it. Blake shuddered, and continued down the path.

After a little longer, he noticed the presence of light around a corner just ahead of him. Grinning, Blake sped up and walked around the corner in question until his tunnel opened back out into the gorge. His eyes bugged out when he saw what he had to go through next.

A bridge constructed of rope and wooden planks spanned the width of the gorge before finally terminating at scaffolding on the opposite cliff face, a half mile away.

"Are you fucking kidding me? Seriously? A rope bridge?" Blake stammered to himself, goose bumps forming on his skin when he looked over the edge into the void. The tunnel before had taken him pretty far down the gorge, but there was still no sign of the bottom. Out of curiosity, Blake grabbed a small rock from the tunnel and dropped it over the edge, listening intently. He gulped when he didn't hear the rock hit bottom. Earth's Abyss indeed. He was now more frightened than impressed at this point.

"Heh, I don't get paid enough for this," he laughed nervously and took the first step on the bridge. The entire structure seemed tenuous at best, but the wooden planks held under his weight.

Blake crossed the incredibly long rope bridge without mishap, thankfully. He was certain that if even one of the planks had snapped or even creaked, he would have had a heart attack and died.

"I never thought I'd be so happy to see another tunnel," Blake commented. He was talking simply to calm his own nerves, else he would go insane. The silence was getting to him. He wished now that he hadn't suggested splitting up.

In the next tunnel, more veins of ore were present, but this time, the ore was luminous and clear blue. Blake knew immediately that he was looking at crystal ore, the mineral used to create lacrima.

"Orb would love this place," he joked to himself again. This time, he could see clear evidence of mining. Some of the mine carts were filled with raw crystal ore. He considered taking one, but decided against it. This was the village's livelihood, after all.

Soon, the tunnel widened out, and soon forked. Blake stood at three way fork, dismay crossing his face. "Shit, where do I go?" he asked of the air, looking down each of the dark passages.

"What, the fuck?" He was able to smell the faint odor of iron coming from one of the tunnels, but he knew it wasn't iron. He had smelled iron already, and this smelled differently. He didn't need to be a genius to know that he was smelling blood. "This is probably a bad idea, but here goes."

Blake chose that passage to travel through, knowing that following the scent would lead him to a clue of some sort. He knew it was more than likely that he would find dead villagers there, but he had no choice except to check it out.

As he walked, he began hearing the sound of something trickling, like a stream of river. He guessed that he was near a source of groundwater or something.

The tunnel descended sharply, taking him lower and lower into the gorge. Every so often, he would see ventilation holes that opened out into the gorge to allow airflow, and that would serve to tell him where in the gorge he was. At the last hole he saw, he was able to tell that he was miles below sea level. He couldn't even see the top of the gorge anymore.

The path then cut away from the gorge wall, and then took a sharp turn. Blake sighed and turned the corner, only to stop in his tracks. His eyes went as wide as dinner plates as he gazed at the impossible site before him.

He was looking at a large door carved from a light grey stone, in contrast to the dark grey stone that made up the walls of the tunnel. Runes of an unknown origin were carved into the surface of the door. What was worse was that the runes were glowing with an eerie green light.

"L…looks l…like I've got no other choice," Blake stammered, and reached for the handle that was engraved into the door surface. When he touched the stone, he could feel latent magical power running through the stone. "Mother of God, what _is _this place?"

The door opened readily before him, revealing the interior of what seemed to be ancient ruins, made of the same light grey stone as the door. The glowing green runes lined the walls, giving the ruins an otherworldly appearance.

Then, he was able to discern he source of the trickling sound. Around the edges of the room and through the passages beyond, a thin groove was engraved into the floor. Running through the grooves was a red liquid that flowed like water. Blake gulped and reached down, knowing that he had to confirm the sneaking suspicion that he was feeling.

He dipped a finger in the running liquid and brought it to his mouth. He touching his finger with the tip of his tongue, tasting the liquid. He immediately spit it out, recognizing the tangy metallic taste instantly. "Blood," he spat, and then wiped his hand off on the walls. Something was happening in these ruins, and something told him that it was unnatural. Perhaps a form of magic paired with blood?

Blake chose one of the passages in the room, happy that at least now he was in a building, rather than a tunnel. The walls were angular and easy to follow. They were also well lit by the green runes.

Soon, the path opened up into a huge chamber that was completely empty save for the stone fountain in the center that continuously emitted clear water. A sudden thirst struck Blake, and he strode over to it.

He bent over the fountain and lowered his head to take a drink, but then he stopped just shy of the water's surface. It would be a horrible idea to drink water in a place like this, as it just might be a source of the mutagen that he was tasked to destroy.

Suddenly, he felt a presence in the room. He stood up and looked around, a tense feeling settling over him like a shroud. Blake couldn't see anything, until he looked towards the path forwards.

A lone woman stood in the center of the path, facing away from him, with her arms crossed behind her. Her short dark hair looked oddly familiar to Blake. She didn't seem to be injured, thankfully.

"Hey!" Blake called happily. The woman heard him and turned around. Blake recognized her instantly by the eye patch she wore. It was Tora. "Tora! Thank the heavens you're all right!"

Tora said nothing as Blake ran up to her with a bright grin on his face. An unreadable expression was on her face, but Blake paid it no mind, so happy was he. He was glad that he could save at least one person.

"Good. You're here," Tora replied in an empty sounding voice. Blake raised an eyebrow, wondering why she didn't look happier to see her rescuer.

"Yeah, it took me a while to find this place. Are you hurt? Did the mutants harm you in any way?" Blake questioned her worriedly, and he started walking in circles around her to look for injuries, but he found none. Tora shook her head slowly. "All, right now let's get out of here and find the rest of the villagers."

"Not just yet," Tora suddenly said, shocking Blake utterly. He was here to save her from the mutants, so why didn't she want to leave?

"What? We need to hurry! What if the mutants find us?" Blake shot back at her. Tora turned her head to look at him, a look of disgust planted on her face.

"'Mutants,' you call them," Tora snapped, saying the word mutant with contempt. "You understand nothing, human."

"Tora? What are you talking about?" Blake asked suspiciously. A niggling fear made its way into his mind, and he took a step back, realizing that the worst may have indeed come to pass.

"We are a higher plane of existence, given gifts far beyond that of normal humans, and yet you call us 'mutants!'" Tora hissed with rage, and she whirled completely around. Blake's eyes widened in horror and sadness as he realized that Tora was already lost.

"No…Tora…not you too…" Blake gasped. Tora scoffed, and suddenly, she was right in front of him. Blake's eyes went wide, but he was unable to react in time before she planted her fist straight into his middle. The air in Blake's lungs shot out with a whoosh, and pain filled his entire middle with the sheer force behind that punch. He was a wizard, whose magical power protected him from the attacks of typical humans, and yet she was able to deal so much damage in one punch? Were the mutants really this strong?

Blake was lifted clear off the ground and thrown all the way across the room. He slammed into the ground and gouged into it from the force, the rocks grating painfully against his back.

"What ever are you talking about, human?" Tora replied with fake innocence in her voice. She raised her hand, and Blake recoiled in disgust and fear to see a reptilian claw there in place of a normal hand, with talons there in place of fingernails. "You know nothing about how wonderful an existence this is! Why, I had not lived, before experiencing this ecstasy!"

"No! Don't let the mutagen take you over as well! Fight it!" Blake shouted back at her, and he leapt back to his feet, his hands clenching into fists. Tora laughed at his statement, lowering her claw once more.

"Mutagen? Oh you amuse me so, you ignorant creature," she replied with mirth. Blake grew angry, but at the same time he was sad to see her lost to the mutagen.

"Sleep Knuckle," he whispered, and his leather bands began glowing with a lavender light. He would put her to sleep, and then deal with her once they had destroyed the source of this cursed virus.

In a split second, Tora had leapt to the wall, and then propelled herself off of it, her claw outstretched her eyes alight with eagerness to tear him to shreds.

"No!" Blake roared, and he dived aside, just in time to avoid her lunge. Tora yowled in frustration, and then she ran at him, swinging her claws viciously. Blake prepared himself. He couldn't let her claw him. One injury was all it would take to infect him, and that would be the end of his life as he knew it. Blake refused to let that happen.

Tora reached him, but Blake was able to dodge her attacks, albeit with some difficulty. More than once he felt a breeze as her claws barely missed his skin. Finally, he found an opening, and he took it. He swung his fist towards her, but was shocked to see her leap an incredible distance into the air to avoid his punch.

She landed behind him, and Blake acted first. Throwing himself to the ground, he avoided her next swipe, and then swept her feet out from under her with his leg. She landed on the ground, and Blake seized the opportunity to attack. He clasped both hands together and swung downwards in a mighty attack, only for Tora to roll out of the way and swing her claw at him.

To his horror, the claw ripped right through the skin on his arm. He gazed in shock as blood oozed out of the injury and dripped to the floor. He fell to his knees, gasping with the pain and holding his arm. He began despairing, knowing that his end was near. A mutant had injured him. He screamed his rage and despair into the air.

"What ever is the matter, human? Surely you are not finished from such a simple cut? I pegged you stronger than that," Tora commented, laughing at him. Blake said nothing, waiting for the end to come. "Oh…honestly…"

"Would you shut your trap, you fucking mutant?!" Blake suddenly screamed at Tora. Surprised by his outburst, she did so. "I'm about to turn into one of you and lose my human life, so why don't you just let me die in peace?!"

Tora began laughing anew. "Oh, how priceless. You actually bought that story about the mutagen? How foolish you wizards are!" Blake looked up in shock. The way she was speaking, it sounded like something else was going on.

"What…what are you talking about? What about the request? Weren't half of the villagers infected?" he snapped questions at her in confusion.

"Oh, I guess I could explain it to you. You could say I owe you some answers, considering what you are going to do for us," Tora replied mysteriously, and she sat down on the edge of the fountain. "This is not a mutagen, human. This is a blessing, given to us by our deity, you see."

"Cut to the chase, Goddammit! Am I infected or not?!" Blake shouted at her, losing his temper. Tora looked irritated by his interruption.

"Weren't you listening to me?" Tora hissed, swiping her claw down by her side. "This is not a mutagen! It cannot be passed from individual to individual through any means!"

Blake was shocked to hear this, as the villagers and the job request itself had stated that a mutagen was the cause and it needed to be eliminated. However, his despair gave way to relief, and he looked at his arm. It was still bleeding, so he ripped off a bit of his shirt and wrapped it around the cut to stem the flow. Now that he knew he couldn't be infected, a grin crossed his face.

"Oh really? Not a mutagen, then?" the wizard repeated, rising to his feet once more. The lavender light grew brighter on his fists, and he raised them once more into a combat position. "How about you tell me just what is going on here?"

"There is no need for you to know. You will not live long enough for it to matter," Tora replied threateningly. Blake's grin grew wider.

"Then I'll just have to beat it out of you!" he shouted, and then lunged at Tora. His fist shot forward, but Tora bent back lithely to avoid it, and then grabbed his wrist with her claw and then retaliated with her free hand. Blake caught it on his palm. He struggled against her strength for a few moments, his eyes gazing into hers. He noticed that her eye was now slitted, like a reptile.

He brought his head forward and slammed it into hers, causing her to release his wrist and recoil backwards. However, Blake used his other hand, which was currently holding her fist, to wrap around her arm and draw her back in. With a smirk, Blake managed to slam his free fist into her cheek, sending her reeling backwards.

"W…what…is this?!" Tora protested, her voice slurring slightly as she slowly began to feel the effects of Blake's Sleep Knuckle. Blake stood up straight and let his grin return, feeling confident about his victory.

"It's my Sleep Knuckle. No one can stand up after a hit from this! You might as well just give up and fall!" he bragged to her. Tora gritted her teeth and held herself up, through her eyelids were beginning to droop. Her human hand reached up towards her face, and for a moment Blake thought she was going to try and hold her eyelids open.

"I won't allow myself to be done in by such minor magic," Tora roared, and then she ripped off her eye patch and threw it aside. Blake recoiled in shock and disgust at the sight before him.

In place of a normal human eye, Tora possessed a completely reptilian eye, complete with scaly skin surrounding it. Blake had expected a wound of some sort, but nothing like this.

Tora's reptilian eye flashed with a green light, and a magic circle formed above her head. The circle was colored green and covered in characters that Blake could not understand. Its mere presence caused distortions in the air, which Blake felt rush across him and push him back.

The circle began slowly moving down, her body intersecting with the center of the circle. Wherever the circle touched, Tora's skin began rippling and changing, and existing structures began warping and twisting beyond recognition. Static electricity began discharging in the air, and then Blake felt the presence of immense magical power.

"Take-Over? No, that can't be it. This is different from a Take-Over!" Blake tried to reason aloud. When the circle finally reached the ground, it dissipated, revealing Tora's new form in all its grotesque glory.

Her dark hair was now longer and scragglier, stretching down to the middle of her back. Her ears were now long and pointed, and covered in scales. Her eyes were now bright yellow and slitted.

Blake was embarrassed to see that she was wearing almost no clothing anymore save for a small shirt that covered her upper chest and what looked to be a bikini bottom. He did notice the spiraling red tattoo that began at her shoulder and traveled over her chest before ending at her face.

As for her lower arms and legs, they were completely transformed, now coved in scales and strange angular ridges. Powerful claws tipped each of these limbs. Lastly, a powerful, sinewy tail stretched from her backside and swayed in the air menacingly. She no longer seemed to be sleepy, and instead looked furious.

"Witness my true form, human!" Tora screeched at him in a more guttural version of her own voice that frankly sounded demonic to Blake. Before he could register what he was seeing, she lunged at him with her claws outstretched.

Blake prepared himself in the split second that he had, and then she was upon him. The two of them exchanged lightning fast blows, though Blake was forced to give ground before her seemingly superior strength. Every time he felt her fists smash onto his blocking arm, he could feel himself bruise, and every strike after that was simply excruciating.

Tora shrieked with laughter as her attacks continued to drive Blake back. She had him completely on the defensive, and finally, she began breaking through his guard and dealing injury after injury on the wizard. Tora's claws were shredding his outfit, and soon his shirt completely fell to the ground, ripped to pieces.

"That's it. I've had enough. Wind Knuckle!" Blake growled, and his fists began glowing with a white light. Tora's eyes widened in surprise, but was unable to react before a powerful torrent of wind buffeted her backwards.

The air twisted violently around Blake's fists, becoming visible tornados there. While Tora was still unbalanced, Blake rushed forward and released a flurry of punches. Even though she was quick to dodge, the gusts of wind given off by his fists continued to hit her, knocking her back and leaving bruises behind.

"You can't just dodge these punches! My wind will always hit you!" Blake taunted, his assault unrelenting. However, he wasn't prepared for her to rush forward, taking his hits, and then plant her fist firmly into his chest. The air left his lungs once more, only this time her power was much greater, and something gave inside of him. He coughed out blood, which splattered onto Tora's face. She grinned wolfishly and licked up the blood with a forked tongue, and then hurled him backwards.

Blake hit the wall hard, cracking it. Pain spread through his back, and he had to take a moment to compose himself on the ground, groaning. Tora walked towards him slowly, bruises having formed on her body. Blake watched warily as she lifted her claws, and green orbs of magic formed there. His eyes shot wide, and he tried to move, but he was not fast enough.

"Take this!" she screamed, and hurled the orbs at Blake. They collided with his body and exploded, sending dust and bits of stone into the air. She continued forming more of the green orbs and tossing them down at the dust cloud.

Finally, she stopped, and she gazed in anticipation at the dust cloud as it settled. Eventually, she was able to see the now incredibly burned Blake, who was holding himself up by one arm, and coughing from the dust.

Blake's entire body felt like it was on fire. That was no ordinary magic that she had sent at him. It had sizzled like acid upon impacting his body, and had left severe burns all over him. He could barely move, but he knew he couldn't fall here. This was an S-Rank mission, and he could already imagine Orb's condescending look if he were to return in failure, or not at all.

"Good, you're still alive. It wouldn't do for you to die just yet," Tora observed with a confident half-smile. She walked slowly towards Blake, who could only watch helplessly as she bent down and grabbed his neck. Tora lifted him up to eye level, her eyes gazing into Blake's.

Blake struggled, feebly pulling against her grip with his hands, but every time he tried, the pain on his burns would flare and he would grimace. He tried to breathe, but he could barely take in any air. He began to see stars.

"Why…are you doing this…?" Blake choked out. Tora didn't reply, instead cocking her head at him. She seemed to be eyeing something on his face, but Blake couldn't determine what. Was she looking at his chin, or something…

Blake was taken completely by surprise when Tora brought her lips to his in a rough kiss. He felt a strange, perverse thrill at the contact, through every fiber of his being was rebelling. He struggled all the harder, but he couldn't break free of her grip, no matter how hard he tried.

Tears squeezed out of his eyes when she forced her forked tongue into his mouth. He gagged as he felt it roam inside of his mouth. Then, two sharp fangs sank into the inside of his lip, drawing blood. Her tongue traced the fresh wounds, sampling the blood. Finally, she withdrew from his mouth, breaking off the kiss. Blake gazed in terror at her mouth to see his own blood there.

"You'll do, I believe. Our deity does enjoy blood like yours," Tora finally said, a satisfied look crossing her feral features. Blake was completely confused, but as he was still trapped in her grip, he was completely helpless. Her grip was too tight for him to break, but loose enough for him to breathe, albeit with difficulty.

"Wh…what do you…mean?" the wizard groaned. Tora smiled and began walking towards the exit of the room, where she had first been standing when Blake had entered the room earlier.

"These gifts had to come from somewhere, you understand. We cannot keep this power, unless our benefactor is appeased," Tora replied with a wave of her free hand. Blake noticed that her grip loosened slightly when she was distracted by his words. He began formulating a plan in his mind.

"Then why did you send out a request, if you didn't need help?" Blake continued to question her. Tora drew closer and closer to the room's exit, even as she answered.

"Haven't you figured that out yet? My, you are so very slow, human. The request was false. Our lord will only accept magical blood, and what better way to gather wizards than posting a request for help?"

Blake suddenly realized exactly what it was she wanted from him. She was going to drain him dry for some ritualistic purpose, though what that purpose was didn't really matter at this point. He felt her grip loosen further, and he seized his chance. Lifting his legs through sheer muscle power, he slammed both of his feet into her chest, taking her by surprise and causing her to loosen her grip enough for him to get free.

Tora hissed in rage, but before she could get up, Blake mustered enough strength to dash towards her and unleash a flurry of punches at her. The wind that accompanied each strike began drawing blood from her.

Blake thought that he was finally getting somewhere, but then her tail whipped around and clipped him on the side of the head, throwing him aside. Blake saw stars, and he clenched a hand to his head. Thankfully, he could not feel blood, though waves of pain were pulsing through his scalp.

"You….curse you! Were you just trying to buy time to get loose by talking?" Tora raged at him. Blake managed to regain his composure and allow the grin to return to his face again.

"Yeah, you got me there. But it worked, didn't it? My, you are so very slow, mutant," Blake taunted, returning Tora's own words back to her. The woman grew furious, allowing anger to cross her countenance for the first time. She shrieked out her vehemence, and then charged back at him.

She brought up her leg and swung it around in a vicious kick. Blake blocked it with his forearm, knocked it aside, and then used his other forearm to block her follow up assault, though he hadn't expected her to use her claws. They sliced into his forearm again, leaving him with a matching wound on each arm.

"I'm going to break you!" Tora screeched, and continued her assault. She brought up one another of the green orbs, and shoved it at Blake's face, with it still clenched in her claw. Blake saw it coming, and used his fist to stop it. He felt the magical power sizzle against his skin, but the magic in his leather bands lessened the damage to almost nothing.

What he wasn't expecting was the explosion as the magic in his leather bands reacted with her magic, creating a sizeable explosion that marked the both of them, and threw them both into the nearest wall.

However, Blake dilated in midair so that his feet landed on the wall, shattering the stone from the impact. He used the wall as leverage to propel himself back across the room towards Tora, who was already up and lunging at him.

Her claw swung forward, but Blake moved his head aside and to Tora's surprise, he slammed his hand into her face, grabbing hold of it and using his momentum to smash her into the fountain in the center of the room. The fountain shattered and broke, even as Blake dragged Tora across the room before finally flinging her into the wall, shattering it.

"Yeah? How about this?!" Blake uttered, and then followed up by repeatedly slamming his fists into Tora's middle. He saw the woman adopt a pained expression and cough up blood from his repeated assaults. Finally, he finished with a roundhouse kick that struck her gut and knocked her to the floor.

Blake watched her stand up, blood tricking from the wounds on her chest and panting hard from exertion. He too was panting, and the burns and loss of blood was beginning to take its toll on him.

"Are you done yet? Because I really can't do this much longer," Blake half joked, even though he knew Tora wouldn't respond well to his joke. To his surprise, Tora grinned and began laughing tiredly.

"Ha…ha…I've never met a human who could give me this much of a fight. Our lord will really enjoy partaking of your blood," Tora gritted out, and then she finally stood up straight again. "Perhaps you should give up and come quietly now. Even if you defeat me here, there are those even stronger than I further in, and in your state, you cannot survive."

"Wait, there are more of you? Stronger than this?" Blake's eyes went wide with shock, and despair filled his thoughts. He was barely standing as it was, and this wasn't even the strongest member? He slumped over slightly, causing Tora to laugh. He now understood why this was an S-Rank mission. Only Thorn could handle this. He didn't know why he had been stupid enough to try anyway.

"Oh yes indeed! Come with me now without a fuss, and I'll see to it that your final hours are pleasurable," Tora walked up to him while speaking, and then she ran a scaly hand down his cheek gently, causing Blake to shudder. She looked particularly seductive at the moment, even though she was not entirely human anymore. "Oh yes, you will be sacrificed, and so will your companions. Our lord deity always hungers…"

Suddenly, Blake lost it. He swung around and planted his fist firmly into Tora's back, sending her flying with the sheer force behind the attack. Tora hissed in rage and righted herself, lunging once more at him.

"Goddammit! How many wizards have you lured and killed for the same senseless reason?!" Blake shouted at her, his earlier easy going manner gone, replaced by rage. He blocked her swipe, grabbing her hand before her claws could cut him. He twisted it back and planted his fist twice into her middle, right where her injuries were.

Tora screamed in pain, but managed to free herself with a swift kick. "It's NOT senseless! He will deliver us to heaven, free of the oppression that is life! All of you wizards are just sacrifices to the cause!"

Blake blocked her next attacks, now ignoring the extreme pain his body was in due to his rage. He was aware that his magical power was running out, so he had to finish this soon. "You idiot. You defeated the other wizards easily, I can believe that. But you're messing with the wrong guild. We aren't just some two-bit legal guild."

"What do you mean?" Tora asked between attacks. Blake began to laugh insanely.

"We are Full Moon! Even if you somehow defeat us, you will never withstand the might of the strongest dark guild in existence!" With that, Blake once again drove back Tora with a skilled flurry of punches. Then, he brought his fists back, and the leather bands began to glow with a crimson light. "Armageddon Knuckle."

Blake suddenly sped up to an incredible speed, so that Tora could do nothing in the wake of the incredible magic power that was emanating from the wizard's glowing fists. She trembled before it. "No…this….I can't be…not by a human…"

"This is for all the wizards you've killed! HYAAAH!" Blake's glowing fist slammed into Tora's cheek, and then a massive explosion of flames shot forth from the point of impact, engulfing the woman with the scalding remainder of his magical power. She let out a cry of agony, and Blake saw her eyes roll up in her head, revealing the whites of her eyes.

Tora hit the ground hard, and did not rise again. Blake landed just next to her, panting hard. Now he was completely out of magic power, and he was badly injured. He collapsed next to her body, a dumb smile on his face. He checked Tora's pulse, and noted that she was still alive. That was good. He didn't want any death's to be on his hands.

"Heh….heh….Thorn will be disappointed with me," Blake said to himself. "I won…but I was beat up so much…"

He didn't lose consciousness, but he was unable to move, the injuries finally taking their toll on him. At least he had won. Now all he had to do was wait until someone found him. Hopefully it would be Thorn. Blake wasn't sure that Victor would even lend a hand to help him if he was the one who showed up.

Blake froze as another sound filled the room. It was a sharp, percussive sound that repeated several times, and finally he was able to determine that it was the sound of someone…clapping? He turned his head painfully to see someone else entering the room.

He groaned miserably when he saw a figure with the upper body of a man and the lower body of a horse trot into the room, clapping his hands with a smug look on his face. The man part of the mutant looked to be in his thirties, in the prime of his life. What worried Blake was the powerful bow strapped to the centaur's back, along with a slew of arrows.

"Congratulations, human. I am honestly surprised to see that one of you had the strength to defeat Tora. I commend you," the centaur praised Blake in a mocking tone. Blake despaired. He couldn't move or defend himself, due to his injuries. Would he be sacrificed despite all of his efforts?

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Istar, your next opponent. I'm sure Tora has already informed you what we have planned for you?" the centaur continued. Blake laid his head back, resigning himself to his fate. He couldn't fight anymore, not without magic power.

"Heh…I can't fight anymore," Blake replied hoarsely. Istar let out a happy laugh, and moved closer, drawing his bow. He snapped his fingers, and a strange white orb appeared in the centaur's free hand. He brought it to the bowstring, and drew it back, forming a white arrow.

"All the better. Now, I can't have you resisting me, so I think I'll go ahead and put you to sleep. Actually, I think you'll like this better. No one said you had to be awake for the sacrifice," Istar explained. Blake smiled wanly. At least he wouldn't have the feel the pain. He closed his eyes, and then he heard the twang of the bowstring. He waited for the impact that would end his life as he knew it.

It never came. Blake heard the sound of impact, but he didn't feel any different. He looked up, and saw that someone was standing directly in front of him. Judging by what he could see, the figure was female, and young at that. He couldn't see her face, but he could make out shoulder length black hair, tight black pants, and a black cloth wrapped tightly around her breasts. Blake's eyes shot wide when he saw her hand spread out to her right. He saw the white arrow stuck in the ground not far away in that same direction, suggesting that she had deflected it. But…how? Who was this? Was she another mutant?

Istar himself looked shocked for a moment before he composed himself. He formed a red orb in his hand next, even as he smiled. "Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that. Who are you, stranger? I don't recall seeing you in the village with the other wizards."

"That's because I wasn't, genius," the girl spoke in a confident voice. The centaur raised an eyebrow at her rude words, but then he noticed that she wasn't even paying attention to him.

Blake looked to see that the girl was looking at him. He noticed two liquid hazel eyes shining down at him with concern, and a calm smile present on her smooth and unblemished face. "Are you all right? You look half-dead," she asked him with a joking tone. Blake laughed weakly.

"I _am _half-dead," he admitted, earning a small laugh from the girl. "What are you doing here? These mutants are strong."

The girl, once she was assured that Blake was okay, turned back around the face the centaur, who was patiently waiting for them to finish talking. "I'm here for the same reason as you. I'm a rogue wizard who came to find the source of the mutagen and destroy it. Except that's not what's really going on, is it?" she directed her last sentence towards Istar.

"You're quite sharp, human. You are correct. There is no mutagen. In fact, you all are but sheep to be sacrificed for the sake of our power," Istar replied, and then he nocked a red arrow onto the bowstring and drew back. "Are you going to give up peacefully, or do I have to use force?"

"I should be saying that to you, freak," the girl shot back with a grin. Istar's eyes narrowed. Suddenly, the girl spread her arms, and Blake suddenly felt magic power stronger than his and Tora's combined. A magic circle, colored white, yet swirling with a multitude of colors, appeared at her feet, and the ground began to shake.

"Take-Over! Diamond Golem!" the girl shouted, and then the circle erupted with white light even as her body began to change. Her body grew thicker and more angular, almost like she was turning crystalline. Her skin slowly lost color, until it was a shining white. Without stopping there, it lost its opaque nature until it was like a shining crystal.

When the transformation completed, the girl had changed completely to diamond. Her skin was now translucent, but instead of seeing blood and internal organs inside, Blake could see thousands of different colors faintly swirling around in random patterns inside, giving the girl an otherworldly appearance.

"Take-Over magic….nice," Blake groaned. The girl dashed forward suddenly, heading straight for Istar. The centaur smiled confidently and loosed the red arrow.

"You may be a wizard, but you are no match for my magical arrows!" Istar bragged, but then he cut off when he saw the girl knock the red arrow aside with her bare hands. His eyes shot wide, and he began loosing arrow after arrow at her, each of them different colors. Not matter what, he couldn't land a hit on her. She continued deflecting each of his arrows with ease.

When the girl reached him, the two engaged in a furious melee of kicks and punches. Despite being a centaur, Istar was quite agile, able to block or avoid the girl's initial attacks. However, Blake could see the man's arms bruising, turning almost black even with the first time he blocked. Istar was grimacing in pain, and no matter how many times he tried to attack, it was all he could do to remain defensive.

At last, the girl finally broke through Istar's defenses, and dealt the centaur a solid right hook with her diamond hard fist. The centaur gave a loud neigh, and he shot backwards through the air and imprinted into the wall, cracks spidering away from the point of impact.

Before the centaur could even move, the girl shot out her hand, and a strange glittering mist shot forth from her palm. The mist, when Blake took a closer look, was actually made up of tiny particles of diamond that shimmered with magic power.

"Diamond Dust!" the girl roared when the mist engulfed the centaur. Each individual particle of diamond then emitted a tiny beam that collided with the centaur, combining with other beams and then exploding violently. The explosion was so bright and destructive, that Blake couldn't look at it directly. He heard a scream from the centaur, which had taken the blast head on.

The girl turned around and walked away from the explosion, her form reverting to normal. A smirk was on her lips, which made her look quite sexy, or at least that's what Blake thought. He was pretty impressed that she had made such short work of a mutant that was clearly stronger than Tora, who had given him so much trouble.

She moved towards the entrance to the room, and grabbed something from there. Blake looked to see her carrying a small bag, from which she was pulling bandages. Blake smiled, knowing that at least for now, he was safe.

"Hold still," she ordered, and she began wrapping the bandages around his wounds, which were practically all over his body. "Oh my god, you're going to be like a mummy by the time I'm through with you."

"Just leave my brain where it is, please?" Blake joked. The girl laughed, and then flicked him lightly on the head.

"Like you had one to begin with. I mean, what kind of idiot comes down here alone? At least make sure you have the power to defend yourself before you go down into the Earth's Abyss of all places," the girl admonished him. Blake flushed, but knew that she had a point. It had been really stupid for him to suggest splitting up. Victor and Thorn could probably handle themselves, but him? Probably not as well as them. He wondered if they were fighting right now.

"So, you seem like you know what's going on," Blake pressed for answers as she wrapped his chest in bandages. The girl nodded sagely.

"I have been able to put some things together. I was assaulted by another mutant earlier, who shed some light on this whole thing."

"Oh? Do tell," Blake replied curiously. The girl then began bandaging his head and face.

"So apparently the mutagen never existed, and the job request was nothing more than a lie to draw in powerful mages that would then be sacrificed to some deity or another. Apparently this god, whether it exists or not, is what they believe gives them their power," she went on to explain. Blake suddenly realized something.

"Shit. Victor and Thorn are in trouble!" he exclaimed, and started to rise. The girl pushed him back down gently.

"Friends of yours? I thought you came down here alone."

"They are my teammates. We split up to cover more ground," Blake related. The girl flicked his head again.

"Idiot."

"I know!"

Blake sighed in relief when she finally finished bandaging him. She stood up, and then offered him a hand. He took it, and found that he was able to rise. It would take a few hours for his magical energy to fully recharge, but even so, he wanted to make sure his teammates were safe.

"Can you help me find my teammates?" Blake asked the girl in a pleading tone. The girl regarded him for a long moment, and then shrugged.

"Guess I will. But you stay behind me," she relented. Blake nodded, and with that the two exited the chamber and continued on their way.

"Damn, I can't believe I had to be saved by a girl," Blake joked good-naturedly. The girl snorted with laughter.

"I know right? Isn't it pretty sad?" she retorted. Blake sighed in mock sorrow. Suddenly, a thought crossed his mind. He felt stupid for not asking earlier.

"Um…right, I never did catch your name," he prompted her. The girl turned her head and gave him a cheeky smile, looking at him from the corner of her eyes.

"Because you never asked, dimwit."

Blake waited for her to answer, but then got annoyed when she didn't. He was about to ask again when she laughed.

"Are you going to ask or not?" she prodded him.

"Oh…right. Um…so what is your name?" Blake finally said. She continued walking, facing forward once more before finally asking.

"The name's Priscilla. Glad to meet you, sir."

* * *

Mwahaha, plot twists! She's alive! Dun dun dun! Ha, who am I kidding. No one reads this anyway.

But yeah, she's alive, and she's really fucking powerful, as she is stronger than both Blake and Tora put together, and wiped the floor with that centaur guy.

This arc is definitely picking up. There will be another fight in the next chapter, and another in the next. This is looking to be a four chapter long arc. Two are already down, and the third will be Victor's story and Thorn's story, and then one last one for the final fight. Oh yeah, it's going to get better.

But I ask my nonexistent readers to leave me a review, so I don't feel forever alone on the Internet of all places.

Keelah Se'lai,

The proud Quarian,

Terran34


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